Falling In Reverse
by Lighting.Up.Thee.Sky
Summary: Being a senior in high school is hard. Being a senior with college applications, relationships, and a multitudinous of emotions is even harder.
1. Dispersion

Hello everyone, I am new to writing GMW. I recently became interested in the show and I have not really visited the GMW fanfiction archive yet. I've read a few stories these past two weeks. I am writing this solely based on the idea I have in my head. I do apologize if there is something else out there like this.

I am eager to be here and share my story ideas with you...

Enjoy.

 **Falling In Reverse:** Being a senior in high school is hard. Being a senior with college applications, relationships, and a multitudinous of emotions is even harder.

* * *

 **1 - "Dispersion"**

 **New York City, New York**

 **La Bernardin** **Restaurant**

 **29 - August**

 **8:23 p.m.**

The engaging atmosphere came to a halt and Riley felt herself being figuratively thrown forwards. Slowly, her heart began beating again, she turned her head slightly, and dropped her salad fork onto the wooden table at _their_ favorite restaurant. _Their_.

Riley stared at him for several seconds before responding. _Had she heard him right?_

She responded quietly, "Charlie, you're breaking up with me?"

Once the words ejected from her mouth, it started to sink in. Their, would no longer be theirs. It was now a separate entity. His. Hers.

He gave a small, sympathetic smile. He leaned across the booth, and placed his hand on top of hers, giving it a small comforting squeeze. Was he really squeezing her hand right now after he just broke up with her, in public?

She swallowed the lump in her throat and was able to mutter a "Why?"

She picked up her food and pushed the salad back and forth, listening to his overly-prepared, ready-to-give breakup speech. She heard something along the lines of, "I just want to be friends... you're a great girl... It's for the best... I'm sorry. We both knew this was coming."

In fact, she had not seen this coming.

"Riley," He spoke.

"Stop," She withdrew her hand from his and stared down at the salad sitting in front of her. _She would not cry. She would not cry. She would not cry_. She repeated those words to herself throughout the rest of their silent dinner. Even though there was the rush of people eating, talking, waiters and waitresses bustling between people and cleaning tables, the only thing she could focus on was nibbling on the salad she was no longer hungry for and not letting the tears that brimmed her eyelashes fall.

"Riley," His once soothing voice was now rough and deafening to her ears. She had been so focused on mentally self-talking herself out of a meltdown that she didn't even realized he had gotten the check.

"Miss would you like a box," The way too fucking cheerful waitress named "Angela" asked. Riley was pretty sure she wrote her number on the receipt in loopy letters with a smiley face. That was what most of the waitresses here did.

"No," Riley shook her head no, leaving her barely touched salad on the table. She scooped her coat up in her arms and held onto it tightly.

"We should go," He sighed and held out his hand. Ignoring his hand, she climbed out of the booth and focused on straightening the hem of her dress.

The two walked in silence to his Range Rover. She sat in the passenger seat and stared out the window for the twenty-five minute ride home. The trees and street lamps began to blur together. Maybe they blurred together because of how fast Charlie was driving, or because nature blends in together, or because of her teary eyes. Their whole two year relationship was now becoming a blur. All of the laughs, the sleepovers, the football games, the inside jokes, was now coming to an end.

"Riley, we are in front of your parent's building," Charlie's voice shook her out of her trans.

"Okay," She forced the word out of her mouth.

"Riley, are you going to be okay?" He placed his hand on her arm. She flinched at his touch and withdrew her arm away from.

"Charlie, you drove to the other side of the city to take me to my favorite restaurant to break up with me... what do you think? Riley narrowed her eyes on his. Since he spoke those ear-spitting words, she had avoided all contact as possible. She didn't understand. They were making plans for the future, they were talking about attending college together and filling out their applications together.

"I was trying to be nice," His voice softened.

Riley nodded her head and reached for the handle.

"I'm sorry Riles."

"Don't call me that," Her tone became serious. "I need to go," Riley grabbed her black jacket and slid out of his vehicle. Quickly, she closed the vehicle door behind her and strode to the entrance of the apartment building. She was hoping this was all some joke and Charlie was going to apologize and want to be together. Unfortunately, the reality officially sank in when she heard his engine rev up and he drove away from her, leaving her to her own silence.

Instead of taking the elevator, Riley let her sorrows sink in by taking the stairs to her apartment. It was a lot of stairs and she had a lot of tears to cry before she entered into the apartment where her parents were not going to let her presence go unnoticed.

...

"Hey, honey, how was your date," Topanga withdrew from Cory's arms and asked when the door opened. It was going to be a kid's free night since Auggie was spending the night at his friend's house for a birthday party and Riley was out with Charlie. However, Riley was home earlier than expected. Normally on the weekends she spent with her friends into the late hours of the night.

"I don't want to talk about it," Riley muttered. Quickly, she walked passed the furniture and made a direct line towards her bedroom.

Cory and Topanga gave each other looks. "I've got this one," Topanga spoke to Cory. Quickly, Topanga jumped up from the couch and headed towards Riley's bedroom.

"Riley, what's wrong," Topanga's worrisome voice echoed her daughter's room.

"Nothing, I'm going to bed," Riley answered grimly. Maybe if she emphasized she was going to sleep, her mother would leave her alone. She threw her jacket onto her chair and kicked off her heels in her closet.

Once Topanga was in front of Riley, she could see the heavy tears falling from her daughter's eyes. "Riley, you're crying. What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"Mom," Riley cried out. She took a deep breath and sat on the bed. "Charlie broke up with me."

Topanga blinked a few times before responding to her daughter's situation. "I'm so sorry Riles. Having your heart broken is always the worst feeling."

"You're not helping," Riley rubbed her eyes.

"Okay two things, one, fix your makeup. It's too pretty to be smeared over some boy and I will be right back," Topanga said as she stood up from the bed.

...

Seeing his wife exit Riley's bedroom, Cory stood up, giving her a look of concern. Topanga and Cory had been together so long that they could reach other's facial expression. She gave him a look and shook her head.

Cory nodded his head, understanding what his wife was internally saying. He sighed and sat back down on the couch, turning the television back on. If he got his hands on that boy, he was going to make him pay for both hurting his daughter and for interrupting his date night with his wife.

"I think this will do the trick," Topanga said to herself and walked out of the kitchen, back into Riley's room.

Riley was wiping the smeared makeup off of her face and rubbing the tears out of the corner of her eyes.

"Sweetie, this always makes me feel better when I am having a bad day," Topanga held up out a glass of wine to her daughter.

Riley eyed the wine and eagerly accepted it. "He broke up with me at the restaurant," Riley sniffled.

"Did he give you an explanation why?" Topanga rubbed her daughter's back.

"Barely... it was a shitty one at that" Riley muttered. Normally her mother would scold her for her language, but, this time, Topanga let it go.

"I don't know why he did it. Last week we were beginning the first week of classes, we celebrated my 18th birthday, and we were just talking about colleges and which one's we were going to apply to together. And tonight he said he doesn't want to be with me, I don't understand."

"I'm sorry Riley. I want you to know, no guy is worth this much heart ache. You've just started your senior year of high school. You have so much going for you and don't let one man ruin it for the entire year."

"It's already ruined," Riley sighed, bringing the glass of wine to her lips.

"Is it ruined Riley?" Topanga shot her a look of question as she brought her own glass of wine to her lips.

"It really is. You and dad have this wonderful relationship. You guys were high school sweethearts. You didn't go to Yale because of dad. That is true love mom. I want that and I thought Charlie and I were going to be like you and dad."

"Riley, I love your father, but you know we didn't have a perfect relationship. I want to tell you that things will be okay between you and Charlie, but they might not be. He broke up with you tonight for a reason. Sometimes you have to accept those reasons and move on."

"Whose side are you on?" Riley back away from her mother's touch.

Taking a deep breath, Topanga brought her glass of wine to her lips again. Making her daughter feel better was not going to be as easy as she thought. Where was Maya when she needed her?

"Maybe this is a sign the universe is telling you something Riley. Sweetheart, don't spend the rest of your time in high school hung up on Charlie. You need to focus on yourself and your own needs. That's the point of growing. This is your year to do so," Topanga softly said she she rubbed her daughters' back.

Riley nodded her head and let her mother's words temporarily soothe the wounds she was feeling. She and Topanga finished their glasses of wine in silence.

"I think I'm going to go to bed. It's been a long day," Riley muttered.

"Okay, goodnight. Your dad and I area always here for you," Topanga hugged Riley. "Love you."

"Love you too."

Once her mom left her room, Riley closed to door and did the exact opposite of going to bed. She grabbed her phone and opened her inbox to check to see if she had a message from Charlie, even though she knew she didn't. Sighing in defeat, she checked the next, closest thing: social media.

The first thing to appear on her news feed was the sudden change in Charlie's profile picture. His profile picture changed from them at the Hamptons over the summer to a picture of himself golfing with a few of his other friends. It was purely agonizing to see that he had already changed his relationship on all of his social media accounts.

* * *

 **Brooklyn, New York**

 **Paints & Trays **

**30 - August**

 **3:30 p.m.**

After parallel parking his car in a way too tight of a space, Lucas climbed out the driver's seat onto the busy city. Stretching his arms high above his head, he embraced the New York atmosphere once again. Even though it was total chaos, he missed this place.

He walked along the sidewalk until he stood in front of Paints & Trays, a trendy, popular art store. Decorated in the front exhibit windows were local paintings, sketches, and other postmodernist art pieces. These pieces of artwork were presumably for sale to the public.

As he entered into the store, he was hit with a faint smell of paint, wood, and any other thing that smelled like art. He walked along the aisles, glancing at the different art products. Who knew that there were so many different types of brushes?

He walked down the aisles until he found his way to the other side of the store where the cash registers were located.

Standing behind the counter was a shorter woman with long blond hair wearing a red apron with paint splatters all over the front of it. The employee was a woman he recognized all too well.

"Maya?" Lucas questioned as he walked closer to the front of the registers.

The blonde perked up from her sketch pad and met her blue eyes locked with his green eyes. Her eyes scanned the man for a few seconds before widening in realization. She placed her pencil down onto the counter and spoke slowly, "Lucas?" Her voice was questioning.

"Lucas?" Maya spoke again. The name rolled off her tongue.

"Yeah that's me," Lucas greeted her.

"What are you doing here Huckleberry?" She teased. She walked around the sales counter and gave him a hug. It wasn't too often Maya gave out hugs, but she always had a soft spot for the Texan southerner.

"I would ask you the same thing, but I am going to assume you work here?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Well your assumptions are right," Maya confirmed.

"Actually, I am here to give this to your boss. My mom sold her a property awhile back and she needed me to drop this paper off here," Lucas said as he pulled a folded white piece of paper out of his back pocket.

After a few seconds, Maya put the pieces together. Lucas's mother was a realtor in the local area and she had recently sold her boss, Anya, another art studio. Anya bought her studio from Lucas's mother. It all made sense now.

"Okay, I'll be sure to leave it for her," Maya took the piece of paper from Lucas's hand and placed it onto the counter behind her. Turning back to face him, she eyed him carefully. It had been awhile since she had seen him. He looked older-there was something to his messy hair, broad shoulders, and rouged facial hair that made him so grown up looking.

"So how long have you worked here?" Lucas questioned, shoving his hands in the front of his pockets.

Maya thought to herself, "Only a few weeks. This summer, I had this sort of apprenticeship with Anya though. I worked in her art studio with her. I learned the trade of the art business, I was able to enhance my art skills and I even sold some of my art. Since she owns this place, she offered me a job throughout the school year here."

"Maya, that's incredible. You've come so far over these past two years," Lucas spoke in astonishment.

"I would say the same about you, but I'm not quite actually for sure what you have been up too," Maya playfully stated. Even though she was being playful, it still stung a bit that Lucas hadn't been in contact with her over the past two years. They had been friends for years and not communicating was something that she couldn't let slide.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Lucas ran his hands through his hair.

"So what exactly are you doing here? And don't tell me that you are here to bring this paper for your mom, because we have already covered that," Maya stared at him intently. Unlike Riley, she was not one for small talk. She wanted to cut right to the chase.

Lucas had no idea why he was so nervous. Maybe he was nervous because he was standing in front of Maya or that he was back in New York or that his life was forever going to change after this encounter.

"I moved back into town last week," Lucas answered truthfully.

"Wow," Maya commented. "What about college?" She was curious. The last time Lucas left, he was so adamant that he was meant for Texas.

"I am attending NYU this fall and commuting from home.," Lucas answered truthfully.

"So why come back?" Maya asked the million dollar question. Lucas left two years ago, so why come back now?

"I have some unresolved business I need to finish," Lucas paused. "And I missed New York," He finished truthfully.

Maya nodded her head because she understood. Oh, she understood.

"Hey what are you drawing?" Lucas changed the subject. He leaned over the counter and grabbed the sketchbook. His eyes scanned the sketch and a small smirk appeared on his face.

"Ranger Rick, so help me God if you do not give that book back to me," Maya shouted in compliance to his actions. He held the book high in the air from her and waved it around. After a few jumps, she resulted in the easier route. She kicked him hardly in the shin.

"Ow," He wailed, lowering the sketchbook back to her hands.

"Serves you right," Maya said, slightly embarrassed about Lucas seeing her sketch.

"Has that someday happened yet?" He teased in reference to her sketch. In response, her cheeks pinked.

"You tell me?" She counter argued back.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **Central Park**

 **30 - August**

 **6:33 p.m.**

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon to be in Central Park. The weather was nearly perfect with a 70 degree temperature and a nice summer breeze. The grass, plants, and trees were vibrantly green. It was one Farkle Minkus's favorite places to exercise. Two years ago, he began coping with his diagnosis of anxiety. He found he was able to better treat the ailment through running and other mediated forms of exercise.

Today, he was running in Central Park with his long-term girlfriend Smackle. Ever since their academic rivalry and hatred turned into a friendship and that friendship transformed into a real relationship, the two were inseparable. Smackle had been the first person he told about his anxiety disorder. Since his diagnosis, the two exercised vigorously together.

"Okay, tell me," Smackle demanded. She knew her boyfriend well and she knew that he was hiding something from her.

"What?" A grin appeared across his face.

"Farkle Minkus," Smackle hissed.

"Okay, okay. I heard from Maya that Lucas is back in town," Farkle said in between his breaths to Smackle.

Smackle was no longer focused on the running path that was in front of her. She inhaled a large breath and stopped running. "What?" She heaved in between breaths.

Stopping next to her, Farkle wiped the bead of sweat away from his shaggy, brown hair. "Yeah, she texted me earlier telling me. He came into her work, dropping something off to one of her mother's clients and he ran into her."

"You're just now telling me?" Smackle demanded.

"I wanted to get most of our workout in before I told you. I figured you would stop and demand for a further explanation," Farkle smirked in a smug manner. He was rather impressed that his plan actually worked. He wasn't for sure if he would be able to disclose that information from his girlfriend this long, especially since it was big news.

"When did he come back?" She questioned next.

"I don't know. I texted Maya, but she hasn't responded back to me yet. She is still at work," Farkle responded. "I'm going to assume I will get the rest of the answers tonight."

"Does Riley know?" Smackle questioned.

"I'm not sure about that either," Farkle responded again.

"Have you talked to her?" Smackle questioned again.

"What is with all of the questions? You are awfully interested in this subject," He let out a laugh as he stretched his legs.

"I wonder if Zay knows that Lucas is back," Smackle wondered.

"I don't know either," Farkle murmured.

"His presence changes things, huh?" Farkle questioned out loud.

"That it does," Smackle reached for her boyfriend's hand and gripped it tightly.

* * *

Thoughts?

Also, A/N: for this story's purpose, Lucas is a year older than everyone else.

Reviews are always encouraged!


	2. Sanity

Wow thank you so much for the wonderful reviews. It is nice to be welcomed in a fanfiction community.

This chapter is rather long compared to the last one. Enjoy.

* * *

 **2 - "Sanity"**

 **New York, New York**

 **John Quincy Adams High School**

 **2 - September**

 **1:07 p.m.**

It was only the third week of school and the pressure was already at an all time high. Teachers went from the first day introductory to passing out texts, quizzes, homework assignments and constantly forcing/reminding them about college applications. Colleges were constantly in contact- from sending emails to literature in the mail.

This specific school year determined the rest of his life. And for Farkle, that was enough to scare the hell out of him.

Over the past two years, Farkle had been practicing breathing methods. Farkle took a deep breath, looked around the library and took in his surroundings before he forced his body down the aisles of more library books.

"Just breath," He told himself.

One of the hardest parts of having anxiety was feeling the world closing around him. After walking around the library for a few more minutes, Farkle found the section he needed. He stood off to the far right of the aisle, eyeing the series of texts in front of him. The non-fiction SAT books were staring right back at him. He needed these exam tips- he needed the experts to reign glory on his future.

After observing the shelf, he extended his left arm and grabbed the spine to the green SAT book. He pulled it out of it's desired space and tucked it underneath his arm.

Grabbing the other books that he previously chose, he walked towards the back of the library, to a series of tables he was sure would not be occupied. However, his calculations were wrong when he approached a table. Seated at the table was a brunette, sitting with her legs criss-crossed, her back hunched over and her face buried into reading a book while eating an apple. She was so focused into the book that she didn't realize his presence until he was standing over her.

Dogearrng the book, she looked up to see who was leaning over her shoulder. When she realized who it was, her shoulders relaxed and she gave him a small smile.

"Riley, that is book abuse. Please do not fold the corners of the pages," Farkle teased.

"Farkle, hey," She greeted. "What is with all of the books? It's only the third week of class," She eyed curiously. That was a lot of SAT books to be holding during the third week of school.

"Riley, these are SAT books. I am obviously studying for the SAT," Farkle responded in an obvious manner.

"I thought you already took the SAT?" She questioned.

"I got a 2250," Farkle groaned.

"Farkle, that score is amazing," Riley responded. After taking it twice, the highest she could score was a higher 1900 and she thought that was enough to get accepted into her main schools. "Why are you taking it again?"

"Yeah maybe if I want to go to NYU or U-of-M or something," Farkle mumbled.

"Both of which are great schools," Riley reminded him.

"Riley, Riley, Riley," Farkle began. "Scoring higher than a 2300 is a matter of life or death. I have not been slaving myself since I was a child to not be the best of the best. I did not take all of these AP classes and outside college courses for nothing. I want to go to the best of the best and if I want to go to Princeton or MIT, I have to be the best," Farkle declared affirmatively.

"Farkle," Riley said softly. He could be so dense sometimes.

Ignoring the tone in her voice, Farkle continued, "I'm still trying to figure out what I did wrong when I took the last one. I must have not gotten the right amount of sleep or I ate the wrong breakfast."

"Farkle, life isn't an algorithm. You can't fix everything," Riley muttered.

"No," He paused, "But this test has to have an algorithm. If I study a little more, review practice tests, I'm sure I can figure it out. I am a genius Riley, there is no reason why I should not have scored a perfect."

Riley was going to continue, however when she saw the aggitated and frustrated look in her friend, she decided to give it a rest. Riley nodded her head in an understanding manner and placed her hand on his arm for comfort. "You're right, I'm sure when you figure it out, you will score even more amazing than what you did the last time you took it."

Farkle smiled. Riley's words were always sweet, kind, and encouraging. Realizing he was still standing over his friend, he backed off and pulled out the wooden chair sitting next to her. He explained what he was doing in the library, but if he remembered Riley's schedule right, why she was she in the library? He wrinkled his nose out of confusion and questioned "Why are you in the library? Don't you have class?"

"I do, but I decided to skip today," Riley shrugged her shoulders as if it was no big deal.

"Riley, you never skip class. What is going on?" Farkle expressed his concerns. Although he had serious SAT studying to achieve before the retake of his test text next month, he always had time for his closest friends.

Sighing, Riley bit her lip. She hadn't told any of her friends about her life-traumatizing break-up this weekend. Unless they had been following closely to Charlie's social media sites, they wouldn't have known their relationship ended.

"I guess you could say I'm running from my problems right now... Charlie broke up with me over the weekend," Riley mumbled.

Farkle's eyes widened in realization and he pulled her into a hug. She buried her head into his shoulder and hugged back. She wouldn't cry anymore, she told herself over and over again. Yet the tears swelled in her eyes.

"Why am I just now finding out about this?" He stared into her eyes when they pulled away.

Wiping away the tears out of the corner of her eyes, Riley began. "Because if I don't tell anyone than maybe it isn't true. Or maybe if I don't tell anyone than nobody will be talking about this like it's the gossip of the week."

"Riley, you should always feel comfortable talking to me about these situations," Farkle sympathetically smiled at her. "Not everything with you has to be a secret. I am your friend and I want you to come talk to me."

"I know, Farkle, I know," She breathed.

Farkle heaved a sigh. He couldn't imagine what Riley was feeling. If Smackle broke up with him, his world would most likely collapse. "I guess the million dollar question is why?"

"I wish I knew. We went out to La Bernadin for dinner and not even halfway through the dinner her began mumbling something about wanting to break up, we should just be friends, it's for the best, something about that we have both seen this coming..." Riley sighed to her friend. The pain swelled in her chest and her stomach ached from all of the tears she had cried.

"That asshole... that's your favorite restaurant. Do you buy any of it?" The swear word coming from Farkle's mouth made Riley let out a small laugh. Very rare did he use profanity.

"No, not a chance. There has to be something else, and I'm determined to find out what it is."

"Are you sure you want to do that Riley? Sometimes the truth hurts worse," Farkle said.

"Yeah," She nodded her head.

"Okay, I'll help you," Farkle gripped Riley's hand with his and he gave her an encouraging smile.

* * *

 **New Jersey**

 **Cafe Gables**

 **2 - September**

 **4:56**

It was a rainy Wednesday afternoon. Instead of sketching in Central Park and listening to music, Maya found herself in a rather unexpecting situation she would not have seen her self in a week ago. After a text message exchange between her and Lucas, she found herself in New Jersey, eating at a small, hole in the wall, restaurant inhabited by just the two of them.

They were huddled in a small red booth in the corner of the restaurant. Out of habit, Maya swirled her straw around in her hard-plastic cup, waiting for her dinner.

On the train ride over, she and Lucas shared stories between one another. Some of the stories were from their youth-really nostalgic if one might wonder-while the others were new and exciting. Their stories were limitless and they could talk forever, about everything and anything.

"Why New Jersey?" Maya asked, raising her eyebrows. She hadn't asked the daunting question yet. However, she was never one to shove things under the rug, so she had to know.

"That's the wrong question to ask Maya. The question is to ask why not New Jersey?" Lucas smirked proudly.

"You're just scared we are going to run into people we know," Maya finished for him.

Lowering his head, Lucas nodded a yes while he wrapped his hands tightly around his glass.

"More specifically Riley?" Maya observed the blond haired boy sitting across from her. Just the mention of Riley's name and a small, yet, confused smile tugs at the corner of his lips. His eyes are dark, but there is a glimmer of hope in them. This would be a perfect painting; a painting she will work on in art class tomorrow.

"Yeah, I haven't seen her yet since I've been back," Lucas answered truthfully.

"I thought you were going to go see her yesterday?" Maya half-demanded.

"I was, but I freaked out," Lucas admitted. Seeing Maya was easy... It was natural and it was as if nothing had changed. The two could hug it out and continue on with their lives. Seeing Riley on the other hand was not going to be easy nor was it going to be natural. It was going to awkward and uncomfortable and edgy. How was he going to confront her. Were they going to hug? Were they going to scream and yell at each other? Were they going to pretend each other doesn't exist? He wasn't ready to face that part of his life just yet.

"You freaked out?" Maya stared at him intently.

"I made it to the front of her apartment building, but I practically turned around and ran the opposite way. I crossed Auggie and his group of friends, but I don't think he recognized me."

"Lucas," Maya warned. "Aren't you worried about Riley finding out from someone else?"

"Who? You swore you wouldn't tell her," Lucas pleaded.

"I don't know... Maybe her mom? After all, your mom and her mom are fairly good friends," Maya stated the obvious. Riley was going to find out sometime that Lucas was back in the city. New York was big, but it was not that big.

"Maybe. But she knows the situation isn't good, so I'm not quite for sure if she would even bring it up," Lucas admitted.

"Okay, well Farkle or Smackle could tell her. Or they could tell Zay and then Zay would tell Riley. Zay and Riley are best friends, they tell each other everything. He wouldn't keep a secret from her like that."

"You told them?" Lucas hissed.

"Lucas, I can't keep this secret from everybody. I had to tell somebody, so I told Smackle and Farkle. You were friends with more than just Riley. You know, everyone was affected by you leaving. Don't be so selfish," Maya bluntly said.

"If I'm so selfish, than how come you haven't told Riley yet?" Lucas raised his eyebrows and eyed her keenly. The look on his friend's face said it all.

Lowering her head, Maya responded. "Because it might kill her or she's going to be furious that it's been almost a week and I haven't told her yet... Or... maybe I haven't seen Riley in months," Maya muttered.

"As in months, you mean a few days right?" Lucas corrected her.

"No months."

"Wait, you haven't seen Riley in months? You are best friends. What is going on?"

"It's a long story Lucas," Maya rolled her eyes and slouched back in her chair. She was not ready this.

"Well we have time," Lucas pressured.

"No I don't think we do," Maya scoffed.

Glancing down at his watch, Lucas smirked. "No I think we do. Our dinner hasn't even come out yet."

"Look at the time, I have to go the restroom," Maya was about to stand up, but Lucas grabbed a hold of her hand.

"Maya," Concern echoed from his lips.

"Okay," Maya said slowly before sitting back down in the booth.

"Right before our junior year started, Riley began dating Charlie. She spent a lot of time with him. Around the same time their relationship began, I was accepted into this awesome art school program at the nearby partnering school. It is a school designed specifically for the arts. I decided to attend school their, even though I knew I wouldn't be spending a lot of time at The John Quincy Adams High School. My junior year I would spend a half day at the fine arts school and the other half of the day at the high school. This year I spend all of my time at the art school and no time at the high school. It is the way the program is set up," Maya explained.

"Charlie Gardner?" Lucas questioned? He remembered the freshman football player when he was a sophomore.

"I knew Riley had a boyfriend, I didn't know it was him," Lucas muttered. He had remembered hearing from his mother that Riley had a boyfriend, Topanga and Cory were skeptical, and she had a boyfriend. That was about a year and a half ago the last he had heard anything from his mom.

"Yeah, him," Maya said. "Of course Riley was super supportive of me for following my art career. Besides, she had the cheerleading team and she had made new friends and her boyfriend's new friends."

"Riley is a cheerleader?" Lucas furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yeah, she chose to try out the summer you moved away," Maya pointed out.

"I sure have missed a lot," Lucas picked his drink up off of the table and brought it to his lips. Where had he been? He had missed out on so much of his friend's lives. He barely knew them anymore.

"Gradually over time, the bay-window visits stopped and our phone calls stopped and it was the occasional holiday parties that we saw each other at. Even then, she was with Charlie and I was with my own boyfriend of the time. We would do the quick catch up- how are you-I'm good-good-we should hang out sometime-yeah of course.

"Wait, the bay-window visits stopped?" Drawing from memory, the bay-window was Riley's favorite spot in her entire life. She loved the bay window and she loved her friends. He had spent countless nights crawling through her window and talking in that window. That window was a central point in his childhood.

"Yeah, Riley said she didn't want her friends coming through her window any more and she wanted more privacy and she wanted to grow up. I respect her decision. I'm not for sure if I would want my friends constantly climbing through my window either. But it still hurt. It was almost as if when she closed the bay-window, she closed up on all of her childhood friendships. She said she wanted to be progressive and move forward with her life, not look back."

Hearing those words from Maya, he realized he was in that inclusion. "She wanted to move on from me," He spoke softly.

"Lucas, you have to realize Riley was really, really, upset when you left. Sometimes the easiest way to heal is to lock up those potential openings and move on," Maya looked into his green eyes. He frowned, staring into his cup as if it had all of the answers.

"We had plans to catch up over the summer but it didn't exactly happen. Riley is a cheer camp counselor, so her summer was spent doing that while I was doing my art assistanceship. That's just how life works sometimes. We are still friends and we have this mutual respect that if we ever needed something we could come to each other, but we just aren't as close as we used to be. I used to be upset over it, but my mom said it's all a part of growing up and I believe her," Maya said confidently.

"Wow," Lucas breathed. Maya's words crowed through his brain.

"It's not like we resent each other, we just sort of grew apart," Maya averted her gaze from his onto the plates of food that were heading their way. The eagerness slipped from her face when she realized the food was not hers.

"Everything happens for a reason I suppose," Lucas shrugged noncommittally.

"That it does Lucas," Maya responded with contort.

"Enough about Riley, tell me about your day," Lucas gave her a smile.

"Let me tell you about this art argument I got into with one of my classmates Patrice," Maya began to laugh. She delved into the story about how she and Patrice got into a fight over impressionism art.

Lucas laughs a long to her story. "Please do not tell me you beat her up."

"I only beat up boys," Maya said smugly.

When she finishes her story, he tilts his head to the side and stares at her.

"What?" She grins.

"I'm picturing you as Robin," Lucas laughs again.

"Who?"

"Robin from _How I Met Your Mother_ ," Lucas grins.

Maya bites her lip, "That's Riley's favorite show."

"Huh," He shakes away the burdening feeling that sits within his chest.

 _Of course it is._ Lucas takes a deep breath before continuing. "Well, anyway, one of the main characters, Robin, is always yelling at her coworker in this high-pitch voice. Her co-worker is named Patrice. I just imagine you being Robin, screaming at Patrice."

"I have seen that clip on YouTube. Riley used to show it to me a thousand times. And no, I am not like Robin," Maya leans across the table and smacks him in the arm.

"Ow," Lucas rubs his arm dramatically. "You definitely are a Robin."

"I told you I beat up boys and there is plenty more of where that came from," Maya slides back into her seat and she stares at Lucas for awhile longer smiling.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **JQA High School Weight Room**

 **5:57**

 **3 - September**

Riley waited by the weight room after football practice and cheer practice had ended. It was another rainy day in New York City. They were being hit with a tropical storm that had swept the east coast. Her cheer warmups were soaking wet and they clung to her petite body. Her once primed hair, now drenched like a dog, stuck to the side of her face and her makeup was smudged in the corners of her eyes.

She hugged her arms and waited underneath the overhang outside as the rain poured from the sky. While most of the other cheerleaders screeched and complained about being drenched in the rain, Riley was almost comfortable in it. The dreary skies pouring an unpleasant amount of water matched her mood- aloof, avoidant, and confused. After an uneasy day of classes, unfortunately being Charlie's physics partner, and a long exhausting day of AP classes, she was ready to eat some soup and climb into bed.

"Hey Riley," Zay's voice was the next to approach her. He along with a few other football players approached her.

"Hey guys," Riley gritted her teeth together and gave off the fakest smile she could allow herself to.

"I'm surprised you haven't ran home yet and changed," One of the football players commented. He took note that the rest of the cheerleaders were frantically freaking out about the rain.

Riley let out a small scoff, "It's just rain. Please, I'm not sugar, I'm not going to melt."

"You know Riley, this is why we like you," One of the players placed his arm on her shoulder. "We are heading out, we will see you tomorrow at the party?"

"Sure," Riley nodded her head and her eyes watched them walk away.

"I need a favor," Riley turned to face Zay.

"Sure," He gave her a confused look.

"Come with me to the after party tomorrow," Riley pleaded.

"Riley, you know I hate those parties," Zay groaned.

"I know, but Zay," Riley grabbed onto his arm and gave him the best puppy-dog pout she could give. "Please Zay. It's pretty much required for me to be there and I can't go alone. I need the emotional support," Riley cried out.

"You have your cheerleading Nazi party," Zay retorted.

"Please, the moment someone flashes a smile at them, they are gone. I've been feeling lonely without Charlie and I need you there," Riley said in a quiet voice, making him feel guilty. Although, she was being honest, she was incredibly lonely without Charlie. She was barely breathing, let alone functioning without him.

"Alright, alright, I'll go. But you better make sure Vanessa is there. She's fine," Zay caved into his friend's pleads.

"Great, thank you," Riley leaned in towards her friend and gave her a hug.

"Don't forget Vanessa," Zay grumbled in her ear.

Pulling a part from his embrace, Riley turned around the opposite direction to head to her car.

"Jesus Riley, you and Charlie have only been broken up not even a week, already rebounding?" A high-pitched voice echoed from the weight room. Turning her head, Riley saw Missy walking towards her in a fashionable manner.

"What?" Riley said slowly while giving Missy a deadpanned look.

"Calm down bitch, I'm just kidding," Missy laughed.

"Are you walking to your car?" Riley questioned.

"Of course. I can't wait to get out of these clothes," Missy whined.

"Yeah, me too," Riley responded.

"So I was thinking, we could all meet up at my place tomorrow and we could get ready together. My parents just finished the extended bathroom to the suite. It would be plenty enough room for us varsity girls to get ready there. Besides, we have to pick outfits to go to the party tomorrow night.

Unlike Riley and many of the other cheerleaders, Missy lived in a luxurious penthouse at the north of the city. Her suite overlooked the city and it was lavished with silks, fabrics, and marble imported from Italy.

"Yeah that sounds great. I've got this new lipstick collection, I've been dying to try. I just hope it doesn't rain so I can actually wear one of them," Riley drew from her thoughts.

"Is it the new Anastasia Beverly Hills collection?" Missy gleamed with excitement.

"Yes," Riley half-shouted in excitement.

"Mine just came in the mail too," Missy exclaimed.

"I knew this is why we are friends," Riley gave Missy a slight push.

As the two walked together towards the parking lot, they passed Charlie and a few other players from the varsity team. Riley put her head down and focused on the words that she was saying, even though her heart was racing. She felt as if she was going to literally die. Seeing him was the equivalent to someone punching her in the chest.

Meanwhile, Missy gave Charlie a knowing smile and continued walking with Riley, not listening to anything she was saying.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **Farkle Residence**

 **8:39**

 **3 - September**

Farkle was so focused on studying that he hadn't realized there was a female figure standing over him. Once he looked up, his blue eyes met with her chocolate brown ones.

"I have been calling you for over an hour," Her voice was persistent and angry.

"Babe, I'm sorry. My phone was on the couch," Farkle realized after he checked his pockets and underneath his books for his device. After he ate dinner, he must have left it on the table.

"It's okay," Smackle leaned in, pulling her boyfriend into a hug. "The butler let me in as usual. I was worried about you... I thought something had happened."

He responded by wrinkling his eyebrows inward and giving her a look of confusion.

"Riley told me that you were having a freak out today in the library," Smackle cleared up any confusion that he had.

"Err," Farkle began.

"Farkle, it's just the SAT, you need to calm down. You are going to put yourself into another frenzy and have another attack. You need to just relax," Smackle put her hands up, coaching her boyfriend.

"I'm honestly fine," Farkle muttered, withdrawing from his girlfriend's touch.

"Really, it's just the SAT. It isn't life or death."

"Easy for you to say, you scored nearly a perfect. If I can't score higher, than I won't get into my dream schools Smackle. Your life is pretty much set in stone. So don't tell me to relax," Farkle snapped.

Smackle took a deep breath before responding back to her boyfriend. "You should calm down before you have another anxiety attack Farkle. You know what your psychiatrist told you..."

"I'm not broken, I don't need fixed," His voice was quick and sharp.

"I never said that," Smackle began to defend herself.

"Whatever," Farkle growled.

"When are you going to tell your friends you have anxiety?" Smackle questioned next. She hated keeping this huge secret from their friends but Farkle had begged her not to say anything. Sometimes it was difficult being the only one who could handle his mood swings.

"Look, when it's time, I will tell them. But for right now, I'm doing fine coping on my own. As I said, I'm not broken and I don't need fixed. I just need to retake this SAT so I can get a good score and move on with my life," He crossed his arms over his body, closing off the conversation from his girlfriend.

"Why are you in such a bad mood?" Smackle questioned rather loudly before taking a seat in one of the wooden chairs next to her boyfriend.

"I'm not," He was short and curt with her. He was definitely in a bad mood.

"Then why are you acting like this," She snapped.

Farkle took a deep breath and reflected on the situation. Smackle was right, he was acting rather brusque and offensive. "I'm sorry. You're right, I shouldn't be acting this way. I shouldn't be taking out my frustrations on you. I really do appreciate you trying to help me. I'm just really frustrated right now... I found out something today that I didn't exactly want to know and now I don't know what to do."

"Want to talk about it?" Smackle leaned across the table and picked up a chocolate chip cookie from the tray.

Farkle heaved a sigh and gave his girlfriend a small grin. "I think I'm going to need a cookie before I begin this story."

"I'll just grab the tray," Smackle leaned across the table once again and pulled the cookies towards each other.

"I'll never get sick of this," Farkle closed his SAT book and grabbed a cookie. "You, me, and cookies. Life is great."

He earned a smile from Smackle. "Are you going to be saying that after you tell me this story?"

"I found Riley in the library today. She skipped one of her classes and when I questioned her why, I guess she and Charlie broke up over the weekend," Farkle stated in a more serious tone.

"They broke up?" Smackled wrinkled her eyebrows. Now that she thought of it, Riley did look like she was upset and she didn't see the two together at all. Normally they would approach each other at the lockers before sauntering away to practice together. Had she been that bad of a friend she didn't even realize her own friends breakup with her long-term boyfriend.

"Apparently so..."

"How is Riley?"

"She's not taking it so well. Charlie broke up with her this weekend at, La Bernadin, her favorite restaurant."

"Who does that?" Smackle growled. When she got her hands on Charlie Gardner, he was going to be one sorry individual.

"After school when I was coming from the Physics lab, I saw Missy and Charlie making out by the lockers. He broke up with Riley because of Missy," Farkle muttered. He was angry at Charlie and he was angry at Missy. How could someone do that to his friend.

"Missy and Riley are friends, that bitch," Smackle hissed. "You have to tell Riley."

Farkle grabbed another cookie. "I can't tell her that. Missy is one of her closest friends. She will be devastated."

"I have no idea why," Smackle rolled her eyes.

"Missy wasn't that bad, until now," Farkle compromised.

"She's horrendous Farkle."

"She's been good to Riley... well until recently," Farkle responded.

"How can you even say that Farkle? Riley's boyfriend was cheating on her with supposedly best friend. I don't know what your definition of friend is Farkle, but that is not in my lexicon of what it means to be a best friend." Smackle was adamant that Missy was an awful human being.

Sighing, Farkle leaned back in his chair. "I try to see the best in everyone."

"I know, and that's what I love about you," Smackle squeezed Farkle's hand tightly. "But you have to tell her," Smackle said in a more serious tone. Why couldn't her friends just have a stress-free senior year.

"No-" Farkle breathed, "Riley has to find out on her own. I can't be the one to tell her this and you can't tell her either. We have to keep this from her."

In unison, both Smackle and Farkle exhaled a breath. Smackle eyed her boyfriend carefully as she tried to sort through her own thoughts. She trusted Farkle and his judgement, so she wouldn't tell Riley.

"So what are you thinking?" Smackle eyed her boyfriend carefully. He had this certain look in his eyes.

"Do you believe in destiny Smackle?"

"Do you Farkle?" Smackle questioned intently.

"Lucas comes back to town the same time Riley and Charlie break up. Coincidence, I think not. I think the universe is playing with fate," Farkle answered slowly.

* * *

I know the story seems very Riley focused right now, but the whole story won't be like this. I am setting up for the rest of the story. I am estimating about 30-40 chapters. It is going to encompass the entire school year. However, I am not quite exactly for sure the direction this story is going. I am sort of feeling it out as I write.

As my readers and reviewers, I value your thought and time. What are your thoughts? I thought about bringing Josh into the story.

What do you pair? What are your thoughts? Likes/dislikes?

Josh and Maya? Farkle and Riley? Lucas and Riley? Smackle and Farkle? Lucas and Maya? Charlie and Riley?

Send your thoughts my way.


	3. Illusion

You all are incredible.

Thank you for providing me insight to the story. I do have a general idea of the direction I want this to go in, but I am glad that you all were willing to give me feedback.

Thank you to _Guest, rosielover943, katebemwah, Pickles333, Guest, amherendeen, Ms. Silhouette, beatzlc, Guest, Guest, Lilith1008, Guest, Guest, misxxlove14, originalguest, and violet1429._

You all are absolutely fantastic.

In response to this story, this was supposed to be one chapter, however, as I was writing it, it became so long. I was about 6,000 words, so I decided to break it up into two. I will post the other one as I finish it most likely Tuesday or Wednesday. This one is more of a filler chapter.

* * *

 **3 - "Illusion"**

 **New York, New York**

 **Paints & Trays**

 **17 - September**

 **3:37 p.m.**

Lucas stood outside Maya's workplace and waited for her by the door. She had a few paintbrushes to pick up for her art class. As it was a nice breezy day, Lucas offered to stay outside. He leaned cooly against the brick and watched the traffic pass by. Here in New York, time waited for no one. As he had been back in the state, he realized that he had missed out on a lot with his friends and his family and time, indeed, waited for no one.

His focus on the street shifted when he heard the door next to him open. More specifically, the door chime gathered his attention.

"So are you coming to the football game Huckelberry?" Maya questioned as she stepped outside her work building. Wincing at the bright sun, she slid her Rayban sunglasses over her eyes.

"I don't know," Lucas shoved his hands into his pockets and walked alongside Maya. Over the last three weeks, he had been spending a lot of time with Maya. Most of their time was spent in different locations taking pictures with Maya for her photography class and getting milkshakes throughout the city. They had a lot in common which was what made them such great friends. They had a mutual understanding of each other and that was what helped make their friendship thrive.

Turning her head to face Lucas, Maya smiled and gave a teasing gesture in his direction. "I definitely think you should come. Besides, I need someone to hold all of my extra camera stuff."

"You technically don't even go to John Quincy," Lucas reminded her. Maya attended their partnering art academy.

"I'm affiliated with them," Maya corrected him. "Which allows me to be their lead photographer for the yearbook and newspaper. Therefore, I have to go and take photos of the sports teams. So it's pertinent I bring my best camera and the very best equipment. I can't have bad photos in the newspaper or yearbook. People actually started reading the newspaper since I've become the photographer," Maya bragged confidently.

"Because of you huh?" Lucas rolled his eyes in her direction.

"I'm pretty much famous to the yearbook staff," Maya finished her sentence with a laugh. She glanced over at Lucas as he followed her laugh with his. She noticed the way he scrunched up his nose when he laughed and he titled his head to the side. Too bad she didn't have her camera, it would make for a good shot.

"Maya," Lucas started to confess.

Picking up on his pause, Maya grinned, "We won't come into contact with Riley."

"You know, my entire existence isn't dictated around Riley," Lucas shoved Maya in the shoulder playfully.

"Okay, then prove me I'm wrong. Come to the game tonight and don't be paranoid you're going to run into Riley. Live your life a little Friar," Maya dramatically emphasized the ending of her sentence.

"Fine Hart. I'll come to the game tonight and show you I can have a good time."

"Great. We have about three hours, lets go get some food. I'm hungry," Maya rubbed her stomach and lead their way to the subway.

"You're always hungry," Lucas exclaimed.

"I am not," She protested, brushing her bangs out of her face.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **JQAHS Football Field**

 **17 - September**

 **8:16 p.m.**

As nightfall fell, Lucas finally gained the courage to show up to the game. He had went home and finished a homework assignment for his Composition course that was due. After some self-talk, he finally forced himself to go to the game.

He found an old John Quincy Adam High School football t-shirt in of one of his rubbermaid totes that had been packed up in his bedroom closet. He paid his money to enter into the game and began to search for Maya. There was a lot of people gathered around the stadium. As half-time just started, people were congregated towards the concession stands.

He spared a moment of his time and took in his atmosphere. The football field, the stadium lights, the cheering fans, and the night sky brought a feeling of nostalgia. It settled in his stomach and a sense of anxiousness swelled within him.

"Excuse me," A voice spoke up. The voice belonged to a younger woman and she squeezed by Lucas and another man standing there. He shook out of his trans and began to walk around the field, looking for the infamous photographer.

After looking for a few moments, he found the blonde, squatting on the field, taking some low shots of the marching band. Lucas was about to emerge onto the field until he was approached by a security officer.

"I'm with her," Lucas pointed to Maya out on the field.

"Where is your ID badge?" The man in uniform questioned.

"Oh, it's in my pocket," Lucas reached into his back pocket and grabbed the lanyard that Maya had given him earlier in the day. He was supposed to wear it around his neck.

"Be sure to wear it while you are out there," The officer told him sternly.

"Yes sir. Thank you," Lucas stepped over the rope and walked towards Maya who was taking more photos. He stood next to her as she was in focus. She stared intently through the camera lens. Her fingers moved in a quick motion, turning the lens, extending the lens, and capturing photos.

"I've got some great shots of the band," Maya said to him as she stood up from being perched down on the field.

Lucas was going to respond, but the band began playing again. He watched the band from the sidelines, trying to see if he could recognize any familiar faces. It was hard to see with the stadium lights.

Once the band quit playing, a speaker spoke into the intercom. "Once again, that was the John Quincy Adam High School Marching Band. Now give it up for the John Quincy Adam High School Chearleaders."

Claps and cheering filled the stadium as the cheerleaders entered the field. Some of them were clapping and showing their school spirit while others were tumbling. Lucas watched as they moved in closer to where Maya and him were standing.

The cheerleaders got into formation and held their heads down until their music began playing. Once the music started playing, they each dramatically lifted their heads up and began dancing.

 _And that was when he saw her_.

He almost didn't recognize her. She transformed into a young adult grown and the last time he had seen her, she was a teenager. Her short hair now extended halfway down her back. She had a fit, lean figure that stood 5' 8" tall. She had the brightest smile he had ever seen.

She was memorizing and she managed to take his breath away. He realized he was staring when Maya smacked him in his side and said, "You're going to start drooling. Close your mouth."

He responded with an "oomf" and closed his gaped mouth.

Even though Lucas knew she couldn't see him because of the stadium lights, he felt that she was looking right at him. He pulled his hat over his face and turned his body away from the cheerleaders.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **The Football Party**

 **11:08**

 **12 - September**

"Thanks again for coming to the party with me," Riley expressed her appreciation once again. She gave Zay a small smile as the two walked through the large wooden doors together. They entered the party.

"Riley, looking good," A masculine voice called out from the. She recognized him as one of the second string football players. She thought his name was Alex. She gave him a small smile. Hopefully her small gesture would deter him away from her. However, it did quite the opposite. He decoded her nonverbal cue and walked around the bar until he was standing front of her.

Swaying from the alcohol, he leaned down, placed his hand on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. The words slurred out of his mouth, "Now that you are on the market, can I take you on a date?"

Zay gave him a glare. "Hands off Romeo, Riley might be available, but she would never go on a date with you. Now leave her alone."

"Maybe some other time Alex," Riley brushed over Zay's harsh, yet truthful words. She gave him a small smile of encouragement as she let him down easy. She knew what it felt like to be rejected.

"I defend you and you go and accept a potential future date from Alex. That is the last time I go out of my way to hurt another fellow teammate," Zay grumbled, running his hands through his damp hair.

"You were being mean," Riley laughed and shook her head.

"Fine, but when he comes up to you six more times throughout the party, you're on your own," Zay tossed her a casual smile.

"Want a drink?" He offered as he leaned down into the cooler and grabbed a beer. Like every party, Riley shook her head 'no'. Normally, she was Zay's designated driver.

Because the music was so loud, Zay leaned over and yelled into her ear. "Is it okay if I go and find Vanessa?"

"Go ahead," Riley gave him an encouraging push towards the mass of people. She leaned against the wall and watched the party goers. Some of her fellow teammates were dancing on the other boys while others were making out with some of the football players. At a typical party, she would be hanging around Charlie and casually making out with him. This party was different. She was alone and not even the party atmosphere could make her feel better.

"Please don't tell me you're going to sulk the whole party," A high-pitched voice distracted her from watching the crowd of people. She didn't have to turn her head to know whose voice was talking next to her.

"I'm not sulking Missy," Riley defended herself.

"If you're not sulking, than why aren't you out there dancing with all of these attractive men,"

"Because, I miss Charlie," Riley admitted. It had been three weeks since their breakup and she wasn't feeling any better. Instead, she had been feeling worse.

Missy, leaned over and handed her a red solo cup. "Drink this and you will feel better. It won't give you Charlie back, but you at least won't be lonely. Come and find me with the non-depressing, fun Riley returns." Missy forced the cup into her hand and walked away.

Great, her best friend didn't even want to be around her. Riley looked into the cup and shrugged. What could it hurt? She brought the cup to her lips and chugged the liquid. It burned down her throat and it wasn't good tasting- yet there was something about it that she liked. She chugged the cup full of liquid and tossed the cup carelessly onto the ground.

In the midst of trying to figure out what to do next, a masculine figure approached her on the right.

"Want to dance?" A husky voice whispered into her ear. Riley turned her head slightly to find Alex standing over her. If he wasn't drunk, he might have been cute. He had short, light brown hair and piercing blue eyes. His one downfall was he was about her height and she preferred someone who was taller than she was.

"Not really," Riley started to say but was cut off by Alex grabbing her hand and forcing her onto the dance floor. She sighed in protest as he was pushing passed people to make room for them to dance.

"Lighten up and have some fun," Alex cut her off once again. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. Maybe Missy was right. Maybe she should have some fun. Together, the two danced to the electric dance music. He twirled her around and she twisted in his arms.

She laughed as he swayed back and forth, trying every dance move he knew possible. He leaned down and questioned, "Is that a smile from Riley Matthews? I don't believe it."

Reflecting on his words, that was the first time Riley had actually smiled since her and Zay's departure. "Maybe," She smirked.

"Charlie's an idiot," Alex started to say.

"Please don't," Riley withdrew her arms. She didn't want to think about Charlie Gardner any more.

"Okay," Alex danced around her and the two picked up where they had left off. Riley let out a laugh as he twirled her around as if they were the only two in the world. She wasn't for sure if it was the alcohol that she consumed or if it was the high of being with another man. Either way, she was enjoying herself.

Alex dipped her back and she stared at the ceiling. He brought her back up and she was standing face-to-face with him. He leaned in and she didn't move away from his face. Her palms grew sweaty and she stared deeply into his eyes. The alcohol was giving her courage she didn't think she had.

She thought he was going to kiss her until Alex withdrew his face and and drunkenly said "Riley, any guy would be stupid to leave a girl like you for Missy Bradford. Charlie made a real mistake when he dumped you to date Missy."

She thought the alcohol was starting to sink until until Alex said those deafening words. She sobered up really quick.

"Wait what?" Riley knew what she heard, but she wanted to hear it again.

"Charlie made a real mistake when he dumped you to date Missy," Alex reiterated. He was drunk, but he wasn't that drunk.

Riley took a step away from him, separating herself from him. Taking in a deep breath, Riley bit her lip. She took some time to think of what to say next. "Charlie wouldn't do that." Her voice was sharp.

Alex blinks his eyes a few times and realized she didn't know. Riley didn't know that Charlie had broken up with her for Missy. He rubbed his hands through his hair and sighed. "Everyone knows. I assumed you did too."

"What do you mean everyone knows?" Riley demanded. What was Alex even saying?

"Come with me," Alex tugged on her arm through the mass crowd of people. She wanted to pull away, but she let him tug on her arm until they were in the back yard of the house. She turned her head to the left as Alex pointed the scene out to her. She stopped listening to what he was saying and she couldn't stop staring at the scene in front of her. Missy was kissing Charlie in the hot tub. Her best friend was kissing her ex boyfriend. They were at the party together.

"Is that proof enough for you?" Alex's words brought her back to reality.

Everyone in the party stopped what they were doing and observed the scene in front of them. Charlie withdrew from Missy when one of his teammates elbowed him in his ribs. Slowly, Charlie and Missy turned their heads and saw a heartbroken Riley standing a few feet away from them.

"You're supposed to be my best friend," Riley cried out to Missy. She was the first to speak and her voice quivered with anger.

"Riley," Charlie was the next to speak but was cut off by Missy.

"Some people just aren't meant to be together Riley. Charlie and I are," Her voice was unapologetic. Riley stood their in disbelief and didn't move from her spot until Missy spoke again. "Some people just aren't meant to be friends either Riley. I'm sorry, but that is us."

The tears swelled in Riley's eyes and she turned her back away from them.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Riley muttered to Alex. She quickly turned on her heels and pushed through the crowd of people who were intently watching her. She was thankful for her long legs that allowed her to move quickly throughout the party and lose Alex in the shuffle of people. She shoved passed people and made a bee-line for the door. Once she saw it, she exhaled in relief. She wanted far away from this party as she could be.

"Riley, where are you going?" One of the football players called her.

"Riley, come play pong with us," Another person called after her.

Ignoring her peers, Riley reached for the door handle and pulled it open brusquely. She stepped outside into the fresh hair and walked quickly towards her vehicle. She let the tears roll down her face.

"Riley wait," A deep voice called. She wanted it so badly to be Charlie. She wanted Charlie to run and apologize to her and beg to take her back. Instead, Zay was running after her.

"I'm going home," Riley answered for him. She dug out her keys in her small satchel.

"You've been drinking," He demanded. "I'll drive."

"You've been drinking too," Riley said in between her shallow breaths.

"Then lets sit here until one of us is okay to drive," Zay pulled her body down next to his on the curb. The two sat there in silence for a few moments. Riley took a deep breath and stared at her tennis shoes. They white and gray on the shoes blurred together with the tears that brimmed her long eye lashes.

"Zay, these past three weeks have been hell," Riley cried out. Quickly, Zay pulled her body into his. She let out the sobs that she had been holding back into the house.

"I know, I know. It hasn't been easy for me to keep this from you Riley," Zay answered somberly.

"Wait you knew?" Widened-eye, Riley withdrew from his touch and stared at him in distaste. He was supposed to be one of her best friends. How could he keep this secret from her?

"Everyone knew Riley... I didn't know how to tell you," Zay admitted truthfully.

"You knew and didn't tell me," Riley repeated again.

"I'm so sorry Riley," Zay apologized again. "I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't."

"So you let me find out at the party and get humiliated in front of everyone? These past three weeks I have been wondering what I possibly could have done to make Charlie not love me and break up with me. I have been making myself sick over thinking this and this entire time you knew. I confided in you," Riley shouted. She didn't keep her voice down because she didn't care who cared. She had already made a fool out of herself tonight with Alex, Missy, and Charlie, nothing else could possibly make the night worse.

She stood up from the curb and brushed out her cheerleading outfit. "I trusted you Zay."

"I know and I'm sorry Riley," Zay stood up and followed her. Before she could walk away, he grabbed her hands and pulled her into his chest. They stood there hugging each other.

As they hugged each other, Riley's anger for her friend washed away. _She needed him_.

"Zay, I need Maya," Riley whispered. Maya would know what to do. Maya always knew how to make her feel better. Maya had the answers to all of her problems.

"Then let's go get Maya. She's at the diner with Maya, Farkle, and Smackle are there," Zay slowly said.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **Nighthawk Diner**

 **12:32 p.m.**

 **18 - September**

"I got some amazing photo shots tonight. They are going to look great for my photography class," Maya gleamed excitedly. Her art career had really taken off and she had found a knack for something she didn't know was possible. When she first started art, she didn't really quite understand how photography was an art. But the more she delved into the photography theory and the application to photography, the more she realized it was one of the hardest arts.

"And the yearbook and newspaper," Smackle, the editor of the newspaper grinned.

"Well that too," Maya dipped her fry into some cheese sauce and brought it to her mouth.

"Did you get any photos of Riley?" Farkle questioned.

Just the mentioning of Riley's name brought Lucas over the edge. He gripped the edge of the table and focused on taking a drink of his water. He hadn't realized how much he had missed about Riley until seeing her cheer.

"Yeah, I have like a whole album of Riley. I mean she appears in almost every issue. That tends to happen when you are friends with her," Maya looked at Smackle and looked back at her fries. Even though she and Riley haven't spoken in awhile, they were friends weren't they? She had made the effort to take photos of her and post them on the school's athletic website and in the school newspaper.

"I'm sure she loves them," Farkle said encouragingly.

"How have you been Lucas?" Smackle was the first to ask. Earlier, when they first arrived at the diner, they gave each other hugs and said their respective introductions.

"I've been good. I started classes at NYU last week," Lucas said, following Smackle's question.

"What are you studying?" She questioned in between drinks of her milkshake.

"I am thinking veterinary. I was looking into constitutional law, but my passion isn't really there." Lucas answered.

"Constitutional law isn't boring," Smackle answered rather dully. She let out a laugh. "Okay, it really is. Good think you decided to work with animals."

Lucas nodded his head. "It will be more exciting once I get through this semester of Gen. Ed. courses. Once I can move into my discipline, I will be more excited."

"I understand," Smackle shook her head in response.

"I'm assuming you already have an answer, but I'm going to ask this anyway. What are you two going to study?" Lucas questioned the two. He watched as they shared glances with each other.

Farkle was the first to respond, "Aero Space Engineering."

Smackle responded next, "Quantum Physics."

"Do you two have to be so smart? Honestly, I wouldn't expect anything less out of either of you." Lucas finished, rolling his eyes in admiration of his friends.

"We aim to be a power couple," Smackle laughed and leaned over, planting a kiss on Farkle's cheek. He smiled in response to her affection and continued eating his food. Lucas observed that Farkle was rather hesitant to talk to him. He made a mental note that he would have to apologize in private to him.

Maya stiffened a yawn and zoned out while half-listening to Smackle and Lucas's conversation. The two were discussing colleges and which school was better. Since she had been up since six, the night was finally getting to her. She propped her face up with her hand and was almost asleep until she noticed two figures enter the diner.

The figures belonged to two of her friends: Riley and Zay. They were talking with one another quietly and when Maya made eye contact with Riley, Riley and Zay waved and walked closer. Maya nervously glanced around the table. Riley and Zay hadn't recognized Lucas as his back faced her direction. Riley and Zay didn't know Lucas was back in town. Riley and Zay didn't know that everyone else knew that Lucas was back in town. Riley and Zay didn't know a lot of things and things were about to get interesting.

* * *

Thoughts?

Please review below. Also, if you would like to see anything happen throughout the story, please let me know.

I also have some ideas created for Smackle/Farkle. They will receive more attention in this story later on. For right now, I am trying to set up the rest of the story.

Also, a certain Matthew makes an appearance in the next chapter :)

Thank you for reading.


	4. Collide

Thank you _smilez014, ChampagneTasteBeerMoney, beatzlc, rosielover94, cherry156, and Pickles333_ for the delightful reviews.

* * *

 **4 - "Collide"**

 **New York, New York**

 **Nighthawk Diner**

 **12:45 p.m.**

 **18 - September**

 _(Recap from last chapter)_

 _Maya stiffened a yawn and zoned out while half-listening to Smackle and Lucas's conversation. The two were discussing colleges and which school was better. Since she had been up since six, the night was finally getting to her. She propped her face up with her hand and was almost asleep until she noticed two figures enter the diner._

 _The figures belonged to two of her friends: Riley and Zay. They were talking with one another quietly and when Maya made eye contact with Riley, Riley and Zay waved and walked closer. Maya nervously glanced around the table. Riley and Zay hadn't recognized Lucas as his back faced her direction. Riley and Zay didn't know Lucas was back in town. Riley and Zay didn't know that everyone else knew that Lucas was back in town. Riley and Zay didn't know a lot of things and things were about to get interesting._

"Riley! Zay!" Maya said loudly, making the group aware of their presence. This was the first time in months Maya had even talked to her bestfriend in person. Was she feeling nervous because she was seeing her friend or because of Lucas's presence?

Quickly, Maya looked around the table at her friends. Lucas didn't dare look back and he stared at his food quietly while Smackle shared uneasy glances with her and Farkle.

Maya was the first to respond. She stood up and approached the girl halfway across the diner, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Maya," Riley said excitedly and embraced the hug. She hadn't hugged her friend in so long. She still smelled of the same Apple shampoo that she had been using for years.

"I've missed you," Riley admitted truthfully in their hug.

In response, Maya nodded her head. Oh she missed her friend too. In that embrace, it was almost as if nothing had changed.

"Zay," Maya pulled into a hug with her and Riley. She was trying to draw out the situation as much as possible. Maybe, by the grace of Gods, Riley and Zay would turn around and leave. Maybe all they were doing was stopping in to say hi to her and leaving.

Riley and Zay withdrew from the hug. "It's good to see you Maya," Zay nodded his head at her.

"So what are you two doing?" Maya stood in front of the two, stalling.

"We wanted to see you. We left the party to come here," Riley smiled through her teeth. Maya gave her a quick look of worry, but brushed it over with a smile.

"Riley insisted," Zay laughed and withdrew his arm that was slung over Riley's back.

Riley glanced around the diner and suddenly she actually felt like smiling. It was almost as if nothing in her life had changed and the live-altering event that occurred an hour ago never happened. She was going to do what she did best: smile and pretend everything was okay. Compared to the earlier events, Riley had completely masked over her feelings and replaced them with a happier exterior. Riley's eyes wandered over the booth where her friends were sitting. Farkle and Smackle were staring at her and Zay. They gave her a smile and Riley acted upon their facial expressions.

"Farkle, Smackle," Riley excitedly exclaimed. She hadn't even recognized the other figure sitting next to them.

Riley skipped over to the booth as Zay and Maya walked behind her. Maya stared nervously at Farkle and Smackle across the diner. She was not prepared for what was going to happen next.

When Riley approached the booth, she was about to greet her friends until her eyes shifted focus on the figure sitting next to them. The smile on her face fell and was replaced with a look of discordance.

She recognized the figure all too well. From his shaggy blond hair to his muscular build to his breath-taking emerald green eyes. She took a step back when he glanced up at her.

As Lucas looked up at her for the first time in two years, his heart skipped a beat. She stood in front of him, dressed in her blue and red cheerleading outfit. The girl was even better looking up close. Chocolate waves hung halfway down her back, held in place with a series of bobby pins and clips. A few freckles graced her cheeks and her uniform contrasted sharply against her pale skin. His eyes met hers; Brown was far too simple of a color. Perhaps, amber was a better color. There were golden brown, blue, and green specks blended together.

"Riley," Lucas was the first to speak. His voice was eager, but hesitant.

His voice was deafening to Riley's ears. It was the same throaty voice that she was once loved. It was the same voice that she grew to hate.

"Lucas," Riley slowly said. She had to force his name out of her mouth. As she spoke slowly, Zay appeared behind her with Maya. He glanced nervously around the table, trying to assess the situation. It appeared that everyone knew that Lucas was back in town but he and Riley.

"What are you doing here?" Zay's voice was curt and sharp. He asked the daring question that Riley could not find the voice to ask.

"I invited him here," Maya spoke softly. She took her seat next to Farkle and stared at her two friends. Giving his friend an extra boost of courage, Farkle rested his hand on Maya's knee and gave it a light squeeze. Maya removed one of her hands off the table and placed it on top of Farkle's. She squeezed tightly, unsure of what was going to happen next.

"Do you want to sit?" Maya asked the two.

Zay and Riley shared glances with one another. The two spoke their own internal language. After a moment of awkward silence, Riley shrugged her shoulders and muttered a "sure." After all, she was curious to hear Lucas's explanation as to what he was doing.

"I'm going to order food Riles. Do you want fries?" Zay asked. He separated himself form Lucas and the rest of the group and turned around to approach the diner counter.

"Please," Riley muttered as she pulled two chairs from a nearby table. She wasn't for sure if she should sit next to Lucas or Zay should. Because Zay left Vanessa and the party to be with her, because Zay was always there for her, because Zay understood her like nobody else, Riley decided to take one for the team. She sat down next to Lucas and crossed her arms over her body. She closed off all body language from Lucas and the rest of her friends.

"Riley. You looked great out there tonight. I'm surprised you were a flyer. You haven't been a flyer in so long, normally you're a tumbler," Farkle tried changing the conversation away from Lucas's appearance.

"The flyer was injured, so I had to do it," Riley's response was short. Farkle couldn't tell if it was because of Lucas or because of something else. He eyed her carefully, trying to figure out what she was hiding.

"So," Lucas was the first to speak up. He glanced at Riley's motive to sit next to him and he was faced with a small hint of hope.

Riley was going to respond until a high-pitched shriek entered the diner. Riley knew that voice anywhere. Yet, she still turned her head. Her eyes landed on Missy with her arms wrapped around Charlie's waist. He was smiling at Missy until he saw Riley. He stopped in his place and Missy turned to see what made her boyfriend abruptly stop. The rest of the football team and cheereladers that were with Missy and Charlie blended in with the background. Riley only noticed Charlie and Missy.

Riley turned her head slightly and saw the looks that were on her friends' faces. Based upon Smackle and Farkle's look of worry, she knew that they knew about Charlie and Missy. Maya looked confused and she couldn't read Lucas's facial expression. She wasn't even for sure what Lucas knew about her. All form of communication ended between them when he had moved away.

It was all too much for her to cope with. Charlie continued to stare at Riley and the rest of the football team grew quiet until all eyes in the diner floated between Riley and Charlie and Missy.

The world slowly closed in around Riley and suddenly she couldn't breath. With Lucas on her one side and Charlie and Missy on the other side of the diner, she needed to leave. In a quick motion, she pushed the chair she was sitting in out and stood up. Quickly, she threw money onto the table and muttered, "I'm no longer hungry. Someone eat my fries."

She shut the world out and forced her way out of the diner. She heard someone yelling her name, but she was so focused on leaving the diner and getting away from her past that she didn't know who was calling her name. Once she exited the diner, she rounded the corner and ran as fast as she could. Her long legs glided across the sidewalk and she continued to run. She ran through the streets of New York and continued going until she saw a small coffee shop that was opened 24 hours.

She realized the coffee shop all too well. Quickly, she ducked into the shop and took a deep breath to catch her own and wondered over to a booth tucked away from the corner. She closed her eyes and leaned against the wall and practiced breathing techniques.

"It's going to be okay," Riley told herself over and over again.

...

(Same time Riley is exiting the diner)

The same shriek that peeked Riley's interest also peeked everyone else around their table. All heads followed Riley's and turned towards the entrance of the diner. In the herd of cheerleaders and football players, stood Charlie and Missy. Charlie's arms were wrapped around Missy's waist and her neck rested in the crook of his chest.

Maya's eyebrows wrinkled in confusion and she watched the look of defeat and anguish flash across Riley's face. Maya watched as Riley looked around the table, quickly reading her friend's facial expressions. Riley clenched her fists and bit her lip, refusing the tears that were welding in the corner of her eyes.

It was that moment that Maya realized she had no idea who Riley was anymore. When did her and Charlie even break up? When did Charlie and Missy begin dating? Her friend needed her now more than ever. Maya reached out to grab Riley's arm for comfort, but Riley was too quick. She was already half way across the diner, pushing herself through the crowd of people.

It was Lucas's voice that was the first to speak. He yelled Riley's name and he climbed out of the booth to follow her. However, she was already gone by the time he made it to the door. Maya then took notice that Zay had already dashed from the counter and was quick on Riley's trail. He was a good friend. He was the friend to her that she should have been.

He had been there for Riley. He knew her insecurities. He knew her problems. Maya knew nothing about her best friend.

"Maya," Farkle read his friend's thoughts and reached out to give her comfort. "Please don't," She breathed and withdrew from his touch. "When did this happen?"

"I think that is a story for another day. We should go find her," Farkle and Smackle climbed out of the booth after Maya and pushed through the hoard of drunk athletes in the diner until they were standing outside. Zay turned his head around the location, trying to predict the way in which Riley would have ran while Lucas stood frozen in motion.

"I have no idea where she went," Zay stopped turning in circles and faced his friends. .

"She couldn't have gone far," Maya breathed.

"Riley can run," Zay trailed. "She's quick and she has a lot of emotions right now. She was gone out of the diner before I could even move from the counter."

"Where would she go?" Maya asked.

"Her vehicle is here so she will come back," Farkle noted.

"Maybe Riley just needs her space?" Lucas murmured. "I've known Riley since we were toddlers. She runs when she needs her space."

"Oh and is that your excuse too?" Zay spat. He stared at his once best friend with disgust. "You needed space too, so you ran?"

"Zay," Lucas sighed.

"Save it," Zay turned his body away from his friend. "I'm going to go and find my friend."

"Let me come with you," Lucas suggested. He knew he couldn't make up for the past, but maybe he could start by making up for the present and the future.

"Riley is going through a lot right now. She doesn't need this... you," Zay pointed his hand at Lucas.

"Quite frankly, I don't think any of us need this," Zay pointed again at Lucas. He sharply turned his body away form his friends.

...

It had been over an hour and Riley sat in the booth with her knees to her chest. She hugged them tightly as she let the tears fall. She had told the employee that she was fine and she just needed to be alone for awhile. He nodded his and accepted her plea. She had been so lost in her own dismay that she hadn't even heard the coffee shop door open.

"Are you okay?" A masculine voice spoke over her.

Riley looked up from the booth table and her eyes gazed across two coffees that had been placed in front of her. Using all of her strength, she slid out of the booth and stood up. Her eyes met with another pair of brown eyes, those of which were similar to hers.

"I don't know," Riley's raspy voice whispered.

"Come here," His voice was comforting and soothing just like she remembered.

"Josh, what are you doing here?" Riley breathed into his chest. She held on tightly as he did the same.

"Zay called me. He was worried. I figured I'd find you here. Want to tell me what is going on?" He asked as she pulled away from their embrace.

"A lot," Riley admitted. "I don't even know where to begin," She said in defeat.

"Let's sit, I've got time. Let's drink this coffee and act like intellectuals at 2:30 in the morning while you tell me what is going on," Josh answered with a laugh.

"I don't know who I am anymore," Riley folded her hands together and rested them on the table. She heaved a deep sigh and stared at her uncle. After weeks of silence and avoiding the conversation, she was finally talking.

"What do you mean?" He probed around for a further answer.

"Charlie broke up with me for my best friend," Riley's face wrinkled into a sour look.

"Maya?" Josh interjected. His eyes wrinkled in confusion. Maya better not be dating Charlie Gardner. He then thought to himself, why would Maya go for a guy like Charlie Gardner?

A look of annoyance flashed across Riley's face, "No, Missy," She corrected him.

"Oh," Josh mumbled. His heart slowed down and he nodded his head in confirmation. He then questioned to himself, when did Riley and this girl Missy become friends?

"Three weeks ago, Charlie broke up with me. I wondered what I could have possibly done wrong to ruin our relationship. Tonight at the party, this boy named Alex told me that Charlie broke up with me for Missy. Everyone knew about Charlie and Missy but me. Even my friends knew about this. Zay knew about this. Farkle knew about this. Smackle knew about this. Why would they keep this from me? I've been miserable for weeks," Riley buried her face into her hands. Her hair fell over the table and she shook her head for awhile.

Josh rubbed his forehead and thought of an appropriate yet wise answer to say. "I'm sure they wanted to tell you Riley. Sometimes being honest and truthful isn't easy, especially when it means you are practically going to kill your best friend."

"I would have told them," Riley insisted.

"Would you have Riley?" Josh stared at her in the eyes.

"Yes!" She exclaimed loudly.

"Remember when I broke up with Maya? We tried dating, but it was just too weird. She was too young for me and there was a large maturity gap between us. Not to mention, I felt like a creep. You knew I was going too, but you didn't tell her because you didn't want to hurt her," Josh bluntly stated.

Riley opened her mouth to say something, but closed it. Josh was right. She knew that he didn't see a future with Maya at that moment and that he wanted to end the relationship. Well, whatever small relationship they even started. She acted surprised when Maya told her and never told Maya that she knew about their breakup.

"You're right," Riley breathed. "I shouldn't be mad. It's hard admitting the truth to your friends, especially when you know it's going to hurt them."

"Riley, you need your friends now more than ever. You are going through your biggest life change within the next year," Josh reminded her. "College applications are coming up, your emotions and feelings are changing. This is your last year of lasts and also your year of firsts. You need to make it count."

"Maya and I haven't talked in months," Riley grumbled. "I don't even know where our friendship stands. Since she moved to the other school, we haven't talked really. I don't know whose fault it is. Maybe partially mine... partially hers."

"Maybe you should focus on fixing some of your relationships. Look Riley, I don't know what your relationships are like right now... they sound pretty chaotic. Maybe you should spend the next few days focusing on just yourself. As you focus on yourself, then focus on mending your relationships. I promise you in a few months-next year, none of this will really matter. What will really matter is what you look back on and choose to see. If you shut out your friends, you're going to regret it. I know you and I know you will."

Riley nodded her head and listened to her Uncle's word. As she listened, she brought the hot coffee to her lips.

"Pumpkin spice," she said with a small smile.

"Of course. It's your favorite," Josh smiled at his niece.

"Josh what do you do when you feel lost?" Riley asked.

"Lost?" Josh questioned as he wrinkled his eyebrows.

"I've never felt more lost in my entire life than I do now. I don't even know who Riley is anymore. I used to be so sure of myself, but I've never felt more self-conscious than I have over these past few weeks."

Josh closed his eyes and thought to himself. "Honestly, Riley I'm lost right now."

"That's reassuring," The young adult muttered.

Josh responded to her sarcasm with a laugh. "Listen to me Riley. It's okay to be lost. It's okay to not know who you are or what you want. These are the pivotal moments where you learn who you are. Everyone goes through a lost period. Everyone goes through many of them actually. As long as you can find your way to happiness, that is all that matters. It doesn't matter how long you are lost, it matters how you respond to being lost."

"What do you mean?" She asked curiously.

"If you let this breakup get to you, you are going to destroy yourself and your spirit in the process. If you focus on being you and healing, then you will find your way. So what Charlie broke up with you and left you for Missy. We both know you are the obvious choice. Please don't let this ruin your thunder. You have a lot of life left in you and don't let anyone take any moment away from you." Josh answered proudly.

"Josh, It's even more complicated," Riley admitted to her uncle. He sat in silence and drank his coffee, waiting for her to continue.

"Lucas is back in town," Riley spoke in a more serious tone. She looked up from her cup of coffee and stared at her uncle. "He was at the diner tonight sitting with Maya, Farkle, and Smackle."

"Lucas Friar?" Josh drew from his memory. It was hard to forget a guy like Lucas. He had been a part of Riley's life so long, that it was hard to separate the two from one another. Most of their childhood memories consist of each other.

Riley nodded her head. "I found out about Missy and Charlie tonight at the party. They were making out in the hot tub. After I humiliated myself and ran through the party, I went outside and Zay followed me. I told him I wanted to see Maya so he took me to the diner. When we got to the diner, Lucas was sitting with in the booth with everyone else. Zay and I were completely blindsided."

"Riley," Josh started to say, but was interrupted by Riley.

"Once again my friends knew something and didn't tell me. I can forgive them for not telling me about Charlie, but I cannot forgive them for not telling me about Lucas."

"How long has he been back in town?" Josh asked. He knew how important Lucas was to Riley. He could see the emotional despair in her eyes.

"I don't know," She paused. "I don't know because they don't tell me anything. And for what, to spare my feelings?" Riley cried out. She slammed her hands onto the table. I just want to scream at the world for making life hard."

"So do so," Josh encouraged her.

Riley opened her mouth to yell, but she realized the setting she was in. "Maybe another night," She smiled softly as Josh shook his head at his niece.

"Senior year is supposed to be the best year of my life and so far it's been the worst. It's been one hurdle over another and I don't know how much more heartache I can take," Riley answered truthfully. "My heart hurts so bad, I don't even know how I am breathing at this very moment."

Josh let out a small a laugh. Even though he was a few years older than his cousin, oh he understood. He understood what it felt like to have your heart ripped out of your chest. He understood what it felt like to hurt while breathing. He understood more than she realized.

"Riley," Josh's voice was soft and sympathetic. "The worst is almost over. Keep pulling through because as it goes on, it will get better. Don't let anyone walk all over you. You're beautiful, smart, and have the world. Embrace yourself. You're going to hurt and that's okay. It's okay to cry. It's okay to feel emotions. It's okay because you're human. At the end of the day, we are all human," Josh finished for her.

"Josh, I'll be okay right?" Riley searched his eyes for any flicker of doubt. When she didn't see any moment of contention, she gave a relieved sigh.

"Yes. Riley you will be okay," Josh leaned across the table and touched her arm. "You have me and you have your family. That right there is the most important thing in the world. Everything else is just minor," Josh reassured her.

Riley took a moment of silence to reflect back on Josh's words. Josh was right. She shouldn't spend the rest of her senior year angry and upset. If she could survive this, she could survive anything. For now, she needed to focus on herself and what she wanted.

After talking about her problems, she felt better. Josh was the one person who she felt completely comfortable and honest with. A burden had been lifted off of her chest and she then shifted the conversation in his direction. Together, the two spent the next two hours talking about everything and anything. Riley was grateful to have someone like Josh in her life.

Riley let out a long yawn and rubbed her eyes. She hadn't realized how emotionally drained she had felt until now.

"Let me walk you back to the diner," Josh said after he noticed his niece's jaded behavior.

"My parents are going to kill me," Riley sighed when she glanced at her phone. It was 4:48 a.m.

"I informed them I was with you... Don't worry about that," Josh smiled. He placed his hand on her back and led her out of the coffee shop. Riley walked along the streets of New York with a small smile on her face as she stared up at the night sky. The two walked in silence and within that silence, she knew she would be okay.

* * *

And there you have it, Josh Matthews to the rescue :)

I really enjoyed writing this moment between Josh and Riley.

Thank you for reading and I hope you leave a review down below!


	5. Heavy

Hello everyone,

I apologize about the sudden stop in this story. I became very busy and I had to put a lot of my stories on hiatus. Things have slowed down a lot and I am going to continue this story.

Thank you to my previous reviewers: _DracoGinny4everr, Smilez014, violet1249, ChampagneTasteBeerMoney, Pickles333, originalguest, claire, and cherry156_. Seriously, you all are fucking amazing.

I love hearing your thoughts, ideas, etc. I take all of those into consideration. I write not only for myself, but for my readers and my goal is to write the best story possible. So pleaseeee keep those thoughts coming.

Anyway, CH 5:

* * *

 **5 - "Heavy"**

 **New York City, New York**

 **Matthew's Residence**

 **8:23 a.m.**

 **19 - September**

After a long night of not being able to sleep, Riley rubbed her blood-shot eyes and rolled over to look at the alarm clock; in bold red letters it read, 8:23. Relaying the previous events, Riley calculated she had gotten three hours of sleep and there was no point in trying to go back to sleep when she couldn't. Her heart was racing and her brain was in overdrive. She was exhausted, there was no doubt in that.

Sighing, she climbed out of bed. She threw her arms in the air and stretched, trying to release the bad energy.

"Yoga, I need to do more fucking yoga," Riley muttered out loud as she rolled her shoulders back and clasped her hands together in the air. Yoga is good for the soul, she reminded herself.

.

.

.

"How are you feeling?" Topanga gave her daughter a sweet smile once Riley entered the kitchen.

"I'm alive," Riley muttered. It was true, she was alive and whatever was going on her life at this moment wasn't going to kill her. She would be okay. She knew deep down she would be. As upset as she was, Josh's words really helped her sort through her quandaries. For now, she had to prioritize her own self and then focus on all of the outside troubles.

"Would you like some breakfast?" Topanga peaked over the _New York Times_ at her daughter. She observed the bags that were hovering below her daughter's brown eyes.

"Mom I said I'm alive; I don't think I can stomach food right now," Riley admitted, turning her head away after realizing her mother was staring at her. "And please stop giving me that look you give your clients after a rough trial. I will be fine," She emphasized the fine with a hand wave in the air.

"I know, but I'm allowed to worry about you. And in order to stay alive, you need to eat," Topanga reminded her.

"Thanks, but I think I am going to go actually take a walk in the park and get some fresh air. I think I'm going to bring my script journal and possibly write for a new story," Riley exasperated while trying to make her mother see that she was fine.

"Okay, but return later to my bakery and I'll have some lunch ready for you. Don't make me force you to eat," Topanga threatened.

"Got it," Riley muttered, putting her hand up to her forehead to salute her mom.

"Don't make me tell your father," Topanga laughed as her daughter walked away. She shook her head in silence as she remembered what it was like being young, being in love, struggling with friends, and handling heartbreak.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **Central Park**

 **10:16 a.m.**

 **19 - September**

It was a cloudy morning in Central Park, not a single ray of light to be seen. The somber feeling of New York matched Riley's.

Riley observed the runners, the owners of pets, the children that played in the grass, the tourists that walked through the park, and the numerous photographers. Her eyes scanned through the masses of people. Studying people, their moves, and their conversations allowed for depth character development. She closed her eyes, thinking about what she wanted to write. Did she want to write about her situation? Did she want to write a romance novel? Did she want to write a science fiction piece? Did she even want to write at all? Was her muse only temporary?

She sat in front of the oak tree for awhile, taking notes and watching others. Maybe if she continued to observe, she would absorb some energy and find the spirits to write. Something, maybe anything would come to her mind and she could write about it. She bit her lip when she realized she had no inspiration for a story, just a bunch of one-liners that would fit well in some sort of weird plot to an episode of a sitcom.

She quickly opened her eyes when she had finally felt something inside of her snap. In a haste, she opened her notebook and grabbed the nearest pen. She wanted to write until she lost her motivation. Her pen hit the page and she wrote all of the frantic thoughts down on paper. She would sort them out later as long as she could get her ideas written down.

Her writing came to a halt when she she saw a blond shouting at a skateboarder who almost ran into her. She knew that voice all too well and braced for the impact. She inhaled a deep breath and held it there for awhile. Slowly, she exhaled the air out of her mouth and stared at the person approaching her.

"Riles," Maya stood over her, staring down at her friend.

"Maya," Riley's voice matched hers.

"Your mom told me you would be here," Maya admitted.

"I figured," Riley pressed her lips together, observing the notebook that was sitting her lap. Instead of paying attention to Maya, she wrote down a few characteristics of a woman that was walking in front of them. She looked tired; tired of the life she was living. The woman walked until she came to a bench. Riley saw the woman's parched lips part open and exhale a sigh as she sat on the wooden bench. Was the women feeling the things Riley felt? Was the woman searching for a purpose in the park, just like she was? Was the women going through a serious identity crisis and questioning every relationship she has? _Because Riley is_.

"I had to go to your mom since the bay window is locked," Maya disrupted the silence that settled between them. Their relationship thrived on that window and once Riley locked it, in some weird way, she metaphorically locked Maya out of her life as well.

Twirling her pen through her fingers, Riley muttered, "It's been locked for awhile."

"I know," Maya sighed. When Riley didn't respond, she questioned, "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay," Riley answered slowly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Maya kick out of her feet and lean into the side of the tree trunk. If she wasn't so mad at Maya, she'd make a good character - her spunky attitude, her demeanor, her piercing blue eyes, her fiery wit, the undulates of blond hair.

"Really?" Maya looked at her friend's face, only to find it as unreadable. She used to be able to read all of her friend's facial expressions. From the small lip biting when she was nervous or the way her eyes would look to the left when she was excited.

"Yes, really," Riley sighed.

"So want to tell me what last night was about?" Maya pressed further. She wasn't leaving Central Park until she got to the bottom of things. She was confused as ever last night at the diner when Charlie strolled in with a girl who was not Riley.

Matching her friend's voice, Riley responded, "Do you want to tell me what last night was about?"

"Which part?" Maya's voice raised an octave.

Her tone switched, and in the most serious voice, Riley stated, "The part where Lucas Friar is back in town and I'm the last to know."

"He returned to New York a few weeks ago. I ran into him at the art shop," Maya answered truthfully. If Riley wanted the details, she was going to get the details all right.

"Somehow you didn't think to tell me?" Riley stopped writing, closed her notebook and set it on the edge of the blanket. Slowly, Riley stood up, matching Maya's eyes level. She looked at Maya, the anger swelling inside her stomach. When her friend didn't answer, Riley pushed further. "Not even a phone call or a quick text. That would have been a decent place to start."

"He asked me not to tell you," Maya truthfully stated. She watched the once unreadable facial expression on Riley's face transform. Her eyes widened and a look of pain flashed across her face.

In a quick motion, Riley began rolling word's off her tongue. "Seriously? You didn't tell me because he asked you not to tell me. If anyone had a right to know he was in town, it should have been me," Her words were dripping with anger. "Everyone knew but me, Maya." Riley reminded her friend.

"This is exactly why he probably didn't tell you," Maya breathed slowly. "He knew you would be upset and angry. He wanted to face you on his own time. And I guess he just wasn't ready yet. He knew you would be the hardest relationship he would have to mend, so he was waiting."

"Okay," Riley let out a sharp laugh. She was mad. She was mad at Lucas. She was mad at Charlie. She was mad at Missy. She was mad at Farkle. She was mad at Smackle. And lastly, she was mad at Maya.

"Do you want to tell me what last night was about?" Maya followed-up with her question again. Riley and her were always truthful to each other. She wasn't going to stop being truthful now.

Out of anger and spite, Riley fought back. "I didn't tell you, because I didn't want you to know."

Sighing, Maya reached over and grabbed Riley's hand. She wrapped her fingers over her friend's fist. She sighed in relief when Riley didn't move her hand away from hers. Together, they stood holding hands, fingers clasped together, before speaking.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that," Maya slowly breathed. "What I saw last night was my best friend running out of the diner because her boyfriend was with her supposed-to-be friend. You didn't want to tell me this?" Maya gave her friend a hard look.

"No, I didn't," Riley aggressively pulled her hand away from Maya's and crossed her arms over her body, closing herself off from Maya as much as possible. Riley knew she was being cold and distant, but in some weird, twisted, way, she wanted to hurt Maya the way Maya had hurt her last night.

Blinking her eyes a few times, Maya spoke, "I thought we told each other everything. Especially the important things."

"Yeah, we used to. But it's hard to do that when we don't see each other, Maya. You know as much about me this past year as I know about you," Riley was forthright, laying out the issue at hand.

Maya didn't turn to look at Riley's face. Instead, she stared into the abyss of trees in front of her. "What do we do to fix this?"

"I don't know if we can Peaches," Riley used their old name for each other. It was almost bittersweet, hearing it from her own mouth. She almost went into a trans, remembering the past, however, thunder roared through the sky, bringing her back to reality.

"You don't know?" Maya questioned, hugging the sleeve of her cardigan tighter.

"No," Riley sniffed in disdain, uncertain of the situation.

"You're letting this ruin years of friendship?" Maya asked incredulously. "A life time of friendship," The blond reminded her.

"Last night, I came to the diner because I needed my best friend. Instead, she was too busy befriending the person who caused me a lifetime of pain. You were there when he left Maya. You knew the pain I felt. You were there with me when I cried. You were there for that all. How could you forget that?" Riley turned towards Maya.

Not knowing what to say, Maya remained quiet, searching for the right words to say.

Riley jumped on the stillness and continued prying for answers. Why hadn't Maya told her Lucas was in town? Why wasn't Maya truthful with her? Why did Maya turn her back on their friendship? "You knew Lucas was back in town. You knew how important he was to me," She breathed.

"Riley, this isn't my fault," Maya began. Before she knew it, she released all of her pent up emotions and thoughts. "You can't get mad at me for Lucas not telling you that he was back in town. Why should I have to sacrifice my friendship with him because of you? Do you realize how that sounds Riley? You're making me choose and of course I'll always choose you, but real friends don't make each other choose. You didn't sacrifice your friendship with Josh when we broke up, and I understood why. Josh means a lot to you as he is your uncle, and friend, but regardless, you care for him. But he really hurt me and I didn't get mad at you for caring about him too. Lucas means a lot to me Riles..."

Riley stopped listening to Maya and she focused on the anger swelling inside of her. It rose from her stomach to her throat and before she could catch the words, she snapped. "I can forgive you for us growing apart. I'm partially to blame for that. I can forgive you for not knowing what was going on in my life because I didn't tell you... because we don't talk. But I cannot forgive you for not telling me Lucas was back in town. That is unforgivable Maya and as far as friendship goes, we're not friends. I could care less what we are."

"Riley," Maya pleaded.

"Just go Maya. I just want to spend the day by myself and you're ruining it," Riley hissed.

"Riley," Maya stated again.

"Fine if you won't leave, then I will." Riley started scooping all of her belongings and tossed them in her bag haphazardly. In a quick manner, she walked away from her friend, not caring if they spoke another word to each other.

* * *

 **New York, New York**

 **Friar Residence**

 **11:31 a.m.**

 **19 - September**

After her conversation with Riley, Maya wandered through New York City. She took several trains, walked through several alleys, along several streets, and kicked her way through several puddles. She held her clear umbrella, watching the large water droplets splash against the material. She walked until her feet wandered to a green mat that was positioned in front of a centrally located apartment.

The bellhop opened the door, welcoming her presence. Nodding her head, she entered into the building, closing her umbrella, trying to avoid splashing rain water everywhere.

"Who are you here to see Miss?" The doorman's accent was thick, but Maya was able to make out the words.

"Lucas Friar please."

"One minute miss," The doorman returned to his desk, presumably calling the Friar Residence. Smiling, he motioned for Maya to proceed towards the elevators.

"Do you need directions?" He glanced over his desk.

"No thank you," Maya shuffled her feet back and forth as the elevator moved up the building.

"Maya," Lucas opened the door. "Hey come in,"

"She said she didn't want to be friends," Maya felt the tears well in the corner of her eyes.

Instinctively, Lucas wrapped his arms around Maya and gave her a tight hug. "What happened?" He asked.

Thankful for his comforting presence, Maya slowly spoke, "She said she could forgive me for splitting apart and that was partially her fault, but she said she couldn't forgive me for not telling her that you were home."

"Maya, I'm so sorry, I didn't think she would react like this. I would have told her if I would have known," Lucas reassured her. "I didn't want to break up your friendship," He rubbed her back as she sobbed into his arms.

"Years of friendship down the drain," Maya wailed, gripping the back of Lucas's black shirt tightly.

"We will figure it out, okay?" Lucas kissed her head, hugging her tight as she cried into his chest. .

"Riley was so mad, Lucas." Maya sighed, pulling away from his embrace. She wiped the tears that hugged the corner of her eyes. Her eyes wandered around the Friar residence, taking in the atmosphere. Her heart tugged at a photo that rested on a bookshelf in the corner of the living room. Lucas stood with his arms wrapped around her and Riley a. That was the last time either Riley, Lucas, and she had hung out together. It was one cataloged in her brain as one of her favorite memories. of Lucas with his arms wrapped around her and Riley at one of the Thanksgiving Macy's Parades. It was the last time either Maya or Riley saw Lucas before he disappeared to Texas.

"Maya," Lucas waived his hand in front of her face.

"Right," Maya returned to the present.

Lucas leaned to the side and used his free hand and ran it through his messy hair. "It's Riley, she isn't going to be mad forever."

Maya pulled away, "I don't know Lucas, she was scary mad today. I've seen a lot of sides to Riley, but never this one."

"I know Riley... We know Riley. How long can she actually be mad?" Lucas asked rhetorically.

.

.

.

Riley found herself wandering through New York in the pouring rain without an umbrella. Her leggings and loose scoop neck tee were soaked. As much as she wanted to go home and change out of her clothes, she couldn't. She deserved the rain that poured upon her. She deserved to feel the cold air nip at her skin. She deserved to feel the frigidness and she deserved to feel alone. For she had pushed the one person closest to her heart away in a matter of minutes. She had done the immeasurable and now she deserved to the consequences... starting with the torrents that flooded the airways.

After walking aimlessly, she finally arrived at her destination. She stood in front of the large brick building with huge glass panes that trailed up the sides of the building. She mouthed the words, "Waldorf Astoria" as she had done every time she approached the building.

The Waldorf Astoria was one of her favorite buildings in the city. It gained international renown for its lavish dinner parties and galas, often positioned in the center of many political and business conferences and fundraising schemes, typically involving the wealthiest of the wealthy.

She watched idly as a man walked to the entrance of the building, holding a large green umbrella over his partner. She could always appreciate a nice romantic gesture between two people.

She entered into the building, ignoring the stares she was getting from the workers. She walked towards the desk that contained the private elevator towards the penthouse suites.

"The Churchill Suite," Riley sighed in annoyance as the usual man who worked at the desk was not working today... this brought forth further clarification. "I'm here to see Farkle Minkus. Riley Matthews is the name. I'm on the guest list," Riley continued.

"Alright Miss Matthews, I will take you up the elevator. Can we offer you a complementary robe?" He eyed her appearance - a drenched one at that.

"Actually a robe would be great," Riley accepted the grand gesture, but slightly annoyed he had to point out that she wad drenched from the rain and her makeup was smeared on her face.

"Here is your robe," He smiled when he returned to the desk. Accepting the robe, Riley followed him behind the desk, towards the private elevator. The one to the Minkus residence.

"Thank you," Riley muttered before she stepped out of the elevator, on Farkle's floor.

"Farkle," Riley shouted outside the door, her fists pounding on the steel door. "Open this fucking door, right now," Riley shouted, her fists beating on the door louder.

"Riley," He opened the door, almost taken back that she was standing in his presence.

"Finally," Riley growled, pushing her way into the Minkus suite.

"Right, come on in," Farkle closed the door behind him.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Riley demanded, sliding off her shoes on the floor mat.

"Okay, stay awhile," Farkle observed as Riley took of her shoes and made her way towards the living room.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked again.

"Tell you what?" Farkle fished.

"Why didn't you tell me Lucas was back in town," Riley began again, wiping away the drops of water that dropped from her loose hair strands.

"Riley," Farkle began.

"You all knew," She growled.

"I didn't tell you because I didn't know how to," Farkle admitted. "It was so weird that he was back in town and I knew you were going through a lot with Charlie and I didn't want to bombard you with news.

So why didn't you tell Zay?" Her eyes narrowed in.

Laughing slightly, Farkle answered, "Because he would tell you. That defeats the purpose then."

"I'm so angry with you," Riley walked over to him and punched him in the shoulder.

"What the hell Riley," Farkle jumped back and rubbed his shoulder.

Her eyes softened when she saw her friend's reaction to her violence. She let out a heavy sigh, leaned her head back, and muttered, "I'm sorry Farkle. I'm just so mad right now."

"Let me get you some dry clothes and then we can talk about it. Also, please don't punch me again. I'm sure that's going to bruise," He complained.

.

.

.

"Where is Smackle?" Riley asked once she calmed down and changed into Farkle's dry clothes. She hugged the sleeves of his sweatshirt close to her body. Slowly, she sat down on the couch right next to him. Pulling her legs to her chest, she turned to face him.

"She's touring Yale right now."

"You didn't go?" Riley asked.

Farkle bit his lip. Riley sensed he wanted to tell her something but he she let it slide. "No, Smackle and I agreed to tour schools on our own. We didn't want each other's opinion influencing where we go."

Riley nodded her head along and listened to her friend. "Well that is smart. There is a chance she will go to Yale and you will go to MIT or Harvard or even Princeton, maybe Berkeley or Stanford. We won't know college admissions until February any way," She responded nervously.

"Exactly. We will apply to the best schools that spark our interest and that is where we will go," Farkle answered confidently.

"What if you two don't go to the same school?" Riley asked out of curiosity.

"We will. But if we don't, we will make it work. It's Isadora and I. There's nobody else more perfect for us, other than you and," Farkle stopped his sentence, not wanting to continue.

"And who?" Riley pressed her lips together, staring at her friend.

"Never mind, ignore I said anything. Where are you applying?" Farkle questioned.

Normally Riley would have insisted he told her what he was about to say, but she had no energy today. Instead, she allowed him to guide the conversation."I don't know. I thought I wanted to stay in New York, but now I'm not so sure. There is a lot of world left to see and I've barely seen any of it you know? I've had a lot of time to think since Charlie and I broke up..."

"Well I've always thought about colleges and my future," Farkle truthfully told. In response, he received a push in the shoulder and a laugh from one of his dearest friends.

"So when are you going to forgive Maya?" He questioned.

Riley bit her lip, "Well, I don't think we are friends anymore anyway. I told her out of anger I didn't want to be friends anymore. So, it doesn't really matter at this point."

Farkle wrinkled his eyebrows, "And why would you do that? Shouldn't you be apologizing to her and not at my place."

Riley shrugged her shoulders and stifled a yawn. "I don't know Farkle. I'm so exhausted, I refuse to move from your couch."

"Riley," Farkle was persistent in getting his friend to talk.

Riley opened her mouth to speak, but she couldn't find the right words to say. What did she tell Farkle?

"Riley, we don't lie to each other." He reminded her.

"I know Farkle, I know. But if I recall, you did lie to me by not telling me Lucas was back in town."

"You didn't ask," He shrugged his shoulders.

Riley leaned over and smacked the shoulder she punched earlier. "That's lying by omission," She growled.

"Ouch," Farkle rubbed his shoulder. "You don't need to be mean."

"I'm not!"

"You're not mad because she didn't tell you, you're mad because you're insecure that Lucas and her have something between them?" Farkle waited for the realization to flash across Riley's face. "I'm right, aren't I?"

She waited awhile before responding. "Why else would he tell Maya he was back and not me? Fine, if they want to be together, I get it. But don't keep it from me," Riley mumbled. Farkle was right. She was insecure. She was insecure that the person whom she was once loved had feelings for her best friend. And her best friend had feelings for the person whom she loved.

"I don't know Riles, I don't know," Farkle and Riley sat on his couch until both were asleep, heads resting on one another.

* * *

 **New Haven,** **Connecticut**

 **Yale University**

 **1:46 p.m.**

 **Bass Library**

Smackle took a deep breath, taking in her surroundings. She couldn't believe she was standing on the property of Yale University. Since she could remember, attending Yale had been her dream and now she was so close to achieving that dream. While tours typically did not happen on Sundays, her parents, alumni of Yale, were able to arrange a special tour with admissions. Early this morning, she took a train to New Haven and then took an Uber the rest of the way to the University.

"Alright Miss Isadora, I am going to pass you off to one of our student ambassadors. He will show you the rest of the way and be sure you get a lunch. Anything you want, it's on us," He smiled cordially. "I apologize that I have to leave early due to a personal situation," The admissions counselor stated once they approached the student union. Standing there, Isadora almost choked seeing the man. He stood 6 foot with the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. He gave her a toothy smile and eagerly greeted her presence.

Before shaking his hand, she caught herself adjusting her blazer and the loose curls that stretched halfway down her torso.

"Brandon Knight, junior in the Mathematics and Physics program," He extended his hand out to her.

"Isadora Smackle," Her hand grasped his and instantly, she felt an attachment. Maybe it was the euphoria of finally being at Yale or maybe it was because she saw something in herself that she hadn't felt before.

"Thank you Brandon," The counselor nodded his head at Brandon. "Miss Smackle, it was a pleasure," He shook her hand one last time before leaving them two in front of the Union.

"Taking a college tour on a Sunday? What gives," The student ambassador asked as the two walked away from the Union. He and Smakle trailed along the path that centered around the outside of the university. They walked in unison along the paved paths, her eyes wandered from building to building, tree to tree, student to student. The university was breathtaking and she still couldn't believe she was there.

"I can't possibly miss class," Smackle responded without looking at the boy.

"I remember those days," He laughed.

Wrinkling her nose, she continued, "I'm taking all AP classes, and it would be too much to try and catch up."

"C'mon, if you're considering Yale, you have to have some knowledge up there. I'm sure you would be fine," He insisted.

"I'm able to enjoy it more on the weekend," Smackle finished.

"Even in the rain?" He pandered.

"Even in the rain, this university is incredible," Smackle confirmed. Her eyes lit up at every passing building, every small fountain, every student studying. She had to be in a dream.

"Do you want to see something amazing?" He turned to her, wide-smiled.

"Of course," She titled her head slightly and gave him a confused look. "How could this place get more amazing though?" She questioned.

"If we hurry, we can beat the heavy rain and I'll show you around our Physics testing lab. I already ordered us Chinese, I hope you aren't allergic and/or like Chinese?" He stated inquisitively.

"I love Chinese," Smackle proclaimed in affirmation.

.

.

.

"I can't believe you get to work in her every day. This technology, this equipment, is so far out of my league," Her eyes continued to wander as she chewed aimlessly on her General Tsou's Chicken.

Putting his fork down, Brandon smirked, "The sciences here get a lot of funding. It's a great program to be apart of."

"My boyfriend would love this," Smackle exclaimed excitedly. She couldn't wait to go home and tell Farkle all about her visit. She knew he would love it just as much she did.

"Your boyfriend?" The student ambassador raised his eyebrows. "Are you two going to stay dating while you're here?"

Smackle snorted in response, "He's going to be joining me."

"I'm not trying to pry or give you doubts, but you realize the possibility of you two going to the same University?" Brandon continued. "It's not very high... especially when Yale doesn't like to admit two people from the same school. They typically outreach all across the country and there is a lot of smart people all all across the country.

Smackle turned to him, trying to shake the insecurities that flooded her brain. She knew the odds of both her and Farkle being accepted to the same universities. Yes, they were Ivy League material, but they were not competing with hundreds of other geniuses, just like them."If you think I can get in here, then wait til you meet him. He's the smartest person I know," She answered truthfully. Any university would be stupid to turn away Farkle from their admissions. He was a genius after all.

"I sure hope you're right," Brandon smiled. "Just note, a relationship while going to college is not easy... and based on what you've told me, you have a lot of plans for your education."

"I know the numbers, I've crunched them. They're not in our favor, but there is still a chance."

"I admire that Smackle," Brandon answered in between bites. "I came here thinking the same thing."

"And?" Smackle pried.

Putting down his chopsticks, Brandon sighed. "College, especially Yale, changes things. You don't have time for a relationship. If you want to be the best, the best in your field, then you have to choose."

"And?" Smackle waited for his answer.

"And I chose Yale," He breathed slowly.

"Is that what you wanted?" Smackle almost laughed at the question she just asked him. It was something Riley would have asked someone. Over the past few years, she had been able to handle her emotions better. All thanks to Riley.

"Hey we have to open our fortune cookies. It's bad luck not to," Brandon changed the subject by rummaging around the paper bag until pulled out two fortune cookies.

"Did you know fortune cookies are totally an American product?" Smackle raised her eyes in skepticism. "And the fortunes never come true."

"Shh, don't say that," Brandon shoved the cookie in her hand. "Alright, do you now how a fortune cookie works, Ms. I ruin fortunes for fun."

Smackle rolled her eyes and waited for him to continue.

"At the same time we are going to open the packages, break apart the cookies, and we will read our fortunes to each other. Then we have to eat the cookies so the fortunes come true."

"Fine," Smackle gave into the childish tradition.

"Are you ready?" Brandon placed fingers from both of his hands on top of the wrapper.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

Brandon watched as Smackle's eyes read over the fortune a few times.

"You read yours first," Smackle insisted.

"Soon a visitor shall delight you," Brandon smirked at Smackle, turning over his fortune for her to see. "And yours?"

"A new relationship is a bout to blossom. You will be blessed," Smackle locked eyes with Brandon and together they stood in silence, not tearing each other's gaze.

"Interesting fortunes I'd say," Brandon finally spoke, breaking the tension between them.

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.

.

They stood outside the science building, waiting for the Uber to pick her up and made small talk.

"Thank you for today, I really enjoyed my tour, of the behind-the-scenes science building." Smackle tightened her grip on the merchandise she purchased from the bookstore.

"You're welcome. I always am glad to show a fellow colleague of mine the most amazing place on earth," Brandon gleamed.

"It's about to downpour," Smackle said as she looked up into the dark sky.

"Here take my umbrella. Just in case you miss the train, I don't want you standing outside in the rain," He held his umbrella out for her to take.

"No, I couldn't," Smackle insisted.

"It'd be my pleasure, really take it," He pushed it in her hands, forcing her to take it.

"Okay, thank you," She took the umbrella and wrapped around the handle was a small piece of paper etched with his phone number. "Ya know, for any questions you might about Yale," He smiled when he saw she had found the piece of paper.

Smiling, she took the piece of paper and shoved it into her coat pocket. "I will be in touch," She confirmed.

"Great. I'll also put in a good word for you to the chair of the mathematics and physics department."

"Brandon, you don't have to," Smackle stated in awe.

"Isadora, you deserve to be at Yale," He reminded her.

"Wow, thank you so much. I guess that's my ride," Smackle hid the disappointment in her voice as the sedan pulled up next to the curb. Brandon walked her to the car and opened the door for her.

"I have a feeling I'm going to be seeing you around in the future, Isadora," Brandon said before closing the door behind him.

* * *

Alright, so I threw in an OC as a point of interest. Because you can't have a great story without some tension and conflict.

Please leave me a review. Your thoughts. Your ideas. I always love your input and take it into consideration when writing :)


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